HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Bars

Michael Fabricant: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what the rules are governing  (a) the use by and  (b) the admission of guests of (i) hon. Members, (ii) hon. Members' staff and (iii) House of Commons staff in respect of each bar on the House of Commons part of the parliamentary estate.

Nick Harvey: Bars on the House of Commons part of the parliamentary estate currently available to staff of the House (all grades) and Members' staff are:
	Bellamy's Bar (Mon-Thurs 12.00-23.00 or rise of House, whichever is the earlier, but not before 22.00) with up to two guests.
	Moncrieff s CafeBar (Mon-Tue 09.00 (bar 12.00)-20.00; Weds-Thurs 09.00 (bar 12.00)-22.00 or rise of House, whichever is the later; Fri 09.00 (bar 12.00)-16.00) with up to three guests.
	Additionally, senior staff of the House of Commons may use the following bar facilities:
	Strangers' Bar (Mon-Weds 12.00-23.00 or rise of House, whichever is the later; Thursday 12.00-22.00; Fri 12.00-15.15 or rise of House, whichever is the later). Staff grade A2 and above may take in up to three guests; Staff Grade B may not take in guests.
	June-July only: Terrace Pavilion Bar (open 13.00-23.00 Mon-Weds). Access as for Strangers' Bar.
	Pugin Room (Bar service open Mon-Tue 11.00-15.00 and 17.30-midnight or 15 minutes after the rise of House, whichever is the earlier; Weds 11.00-15.00 and 17.30-23.00; Thurs 11.00-15.00 and 17.30-22.00; closed Fridays). Open to staff grade A2 and above with up to three guests.
	Members and up to three guests have access to all the bar facilities listed above. Also, the Members' Smoking Room is provided for the exclusive use of Members of Parliament (Mon-Tue 14.00-17.00 and 18.00-midnight; Weds 14.00-17.00 and 18.00-23.00; Thurs 13.00-17.00 and 18.00-19.00; closed Fridays).
	The following bars are provided elsewhere on the parliamentary estate for all parliamentary pass holders, including Members, their staff and all staff of the House of Commons:
	Sports and Social Club bar 12.00-23.00 Monday to Friday (sitting weeks) and at reduced time, depending on the level of trade, during recess.
	Lords Bar (Mon-Thurs 10.30-21.00; Fri 10.30-19.30) with up to two guests.

Department of Resources

David Laws: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how much was spent on running costs for the Department of Resources and its predecessors in each year from 2005-06 to 2008-09; what estimate has been made of such costs in 2009-10; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Harvey: The direct running costs of the Department of Resources and its predecessor the Department of Finance and Administration have been:
	
		
			  £ 000 
			   Actual  Forecast 
			 2005-06 7,596 - 
			 2006-07 6,860 - 
			 2007-08 7,939 - 
			 2008-09 8,753 - 
			 2009-10 8,753 9,922 
		
	
	These figures include staff and directly related accommodation costs, but not other expenditure managed on behalf of the House as a whole. They also exclude ICT infrastructure costs which are managed jointly by the parliamentary ICT for both Houses.
	Fluctuations in expenditure represent organisational and other work changes that have arisen during the period. For example, the departmental ICT team was amalgamated into PICT on 1 January 2006, the Internal Audit team transferred to the Office of the Chief Executive on 1 January 2008, and there have been additional resources consumed recently because of FOI, the Legg Review and other Member-related work.

Members: Allowances

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what remunerated positions Sir Thomas Legg declared prior to his appointment to review payments from the additional cost allowance; and whether Sir Thomas was required to declare the amount of remuneration he receives from such positions.

Nick Harvey: Sir Thomas Legg has declared the following positions: non-executive director of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, consultant to Clifford Chance, and Commissioner of the Audit Commission. Sir Thomas was not required to inform the House Administration of the amount of remuneration from these positions.

JUSTICE

Back Office: Central Government

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the reasons for the cost of the finance function of his Department's core headquarters referred to in the publication Benchmarking the Back Office: Central Government; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Wills: The cost of the finance function for the Ministry of Justice's headquarters is made up of:
	the costs of finance teams that provide support to a number of the MOJ's Directorates, including the corporate centre which provides support and challenge to the entire Department;
	the costs for transaction processing for the former Department for Constitutional Affairs parts of the Department (including HM Courts Service and the Tribunal Service) that are funded and managed through a central contract.
	The cost differences reflected in the publication 'Benchmarking the Back Office: Central Government' may have a number of causes including, as the report notes: "different bodies in central Government have very different business models to deliver their different services". I believe that, given the MOJ's business model, this level of headquarters expenditure is reasonable in supporting a wider business area and providing support and challenge to help the board and Ministers to achieve outcomes efficiently.
	The MOJ supports the work on benchmarking, and is working with other Government Departments to help us to better understand the variations in costs these data illustrate and to drive further efficiencies across the MOJ through the shared services programme started in July 2009. The MOJ also has plans, annexed to 'Putting the Frontline First', to improve the efficiency of both its finance and human resources functions across its headquarters, agencies and non-departmental public bodies. These include moving all human resources and finance transaction processing into a single shared service.

Convictions: Knives

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been  (a) charged and  (b) convicted of an offence of carrying a knife in each of the last five years.

Claire Ward: The number of persons proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for offences relating to carrying a knife, England and Wales 2003 to 2007 (latest available) is shown in the following table.
	The Ministry of Justice do not collect charging data; proceeded against information has been provided in lieu.
	Court proceedings data for 2008 are planned for publication on 28 January 2010.
	
		
			  Number of persons proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for offences relating to knife possession( 1) , England and Wales 2003 - 07( 2, 3) 
			   Proceeded against  Found guilty 
			 2003 6,928 5,396 
			 2004 7,352 5,890 
			 2005 7,319 6,005 
			 2006 7,699 6,369 
			 2007 7,404 6,169 
			 (1 )Includes the following offences and statutes: Having an article with blade or point in public place. (Criminal Justice Act 1988 S.139 as amended by Offensive Weapons Act 1996 S.3). Having an article with blade or point on school premises. (Criminal Justice Act 1988 S.139A (1)(5)(a) as added by Offensive Weapons Act 1996 S.4(1)). (2) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice.

Driving Offences

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average fine given to a person convicted of driving without insurance was in each justice administrative area in each year since 1997.

Claire Ward: The number of average fines imposed at all courts in England and Wales for using a motor vehicle uninsured against third party risks, by police force area, from 1997 to 2007 (latest available) is given in the table.
	Court proceedings data for 2008 are planned for publication on 28 January 2010.
	
		
			  Average fine imposed at all courts for offences of using a motor vehicle uninsured against third party risks, by police force area, England and Wales, 1997 to 2007( 1) 
			   Average amount of fines (£) 
			  Police force area  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Avon and Somerset 259 204 164 182 130 133 138 154 154 155 155 
			 Bedfordshire 314 293 274 226 164 169 137 143 156 183 210 
			 Cambridgeshire 220 209 215 182 119 118 131 152 171 182 186 
			 Cheshire 274 248 237 211 149 153 167 179 190 195 224 
			 City of London 332 314 346 374 369 368 334 230 198 214 245 
			 Cleveland 162 167 170 179 167 173 171 189 202 210 216 
			 Cumbria 150 171 220 265 151 151 159 169 171 186 193 
			 Derbyshire 270 279 283 296 337 355 367 367 376 372 379 
			 Devon and Cornwall 184 185 178 179 133 132 127 134 145 150 161 
			 Dorset 295 302 301 261 121 114 125 158 171 176 186 
			 Durham 181 177 194 159 118 122 121 116 123 132 138 
			 Essex 174 149 140 123 101 104 112 164 182 202 217 
			 Gloucestershire 154 201 247 240 91 86 133 148 143 140 156 
			 Greater Manchester 245 226 236 232 152 151 157 167 176 181 186 
			 Hampshire 132 135 138 136 119 122 124 131 138 141 150 
			 Hertfordshire 193 164 173 205 155 166 181 198 208 216 216 
			 Humberside 159 148 143 137 122 132 137 150 180 194 200 
			 Kent 245 241 226 271 209 192 190 197 204 221 223 
			 Lancashire 332 296 237 219 111 113 141 156 169 183 191 
			 Leicestershire 318 318 276 254 134 135 138 150 145 152 163 
			 Lincolnshire 159 197 209 188 133 134 148 179 185 196 202 
			 Merseyside 199 203 200 206 163 167 148 137 141 147 156 
			 Metropolitan Police 202 184 184 169 139 140 143 147 165 179 195 
			 Norfolk 242 256 265 210 99 108 139 152 152 165 167 
			 North Yorkshire 249 236 230 211 130 137 141 160 177 185 193 
			 Northamptonshire 243 286 310 280 280 334 245 183 156 172 175 
			 Northumbria 136 146 148 144 130 135 135 137 142 148 153 
			 Nottinghamshire 164 165 153 150 152 156 152 188 138 147 159 
			 South Yorkshire 194 206 191 169 128 137 146 126 147 143 157 
			 Staffordshire 251 228 234 198 152 163 166 186 230 256 257 
			 Suffolk 192 192 192 185 128 138 133 136 156 162 168 
			 Surrey 243 242 215 218 201 215 221 198 195 217 236 
			 Sussex 218 186 181 167 118 117 138 162 170 169 185 
			 Thames Valley 292 256 268 250 134 135 158 198 206 217 226 
			 Warwickshire 228 175 178 188 157 168 164 210 200 230 229 
			 West Mercia 268 282 282 263 176 180 165 193 208 218 223 
			 West Midlands 207 190 189 201 169 192 200 206 207 211 209 
			 West Yorkshire 255 242 242 208 120 123 134 144 144 146 147 
			 Wiltshire 152 183 186 204 283 286 280 200 208 228 217 
			 Dyfed Powys 183 182 175 169 155 166 172 187 184 191 206 
			 Gwent 253 225 225 208 148 154 170 157 171 172 174 
			 North Wales 209 226 272 230 143 150 149 154 163 173 175 
			 South Wales 190 179 182 188 159 173 158 154 149 158 167 
			 England and Wales 224 214 212 203 150 155 160 169 177 185 194 
			 (1) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are use.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice

Family Courts: Mass Media

Edward Timpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when an assessment will be made of the effectiveness of the changes introduced in April 2009 to arrangements for the media to attend family court hearings.

Bridget Prentice: The Ministry of Justice published a study into the impact of the April 2009 rule changes on 21 January 2010. The study can be found on the Ministry of Justice website and copies have been laid in the House of Commons Library.

Legal Advice and Assistance

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 7 January 2010,  Official Report, column 546W, on legal advice and assistance, whether seasonal fluctuations in workload of new matter start allocations for providers of the Advice and Assistance Scheme (Legal Help) were taken into account when deciding upon the period 9 April to August 2009 to assess the annual run-rate.

Bridget Prentice: Seasonal fluctuations were not taken into account when calculating the annual run-rate of firms, which predict the number of matter starts that might potentially be required by each provider to year end. However, any provider who had their allocation of matter starts reduced following the review can request a review by the Legal Services Commission and present evidence in support of a request to reinstate matter starts, including data regarding seasonal fluctuations. Seasonal fluctuations vary greatly from firm to firm and among categories of law and therefore it is not possible to apply a standard formula to take these into account.

National Offender Management Service

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the merits of proposals to set up separate operational arms in the National Offender Management Service.

Maria Eagle: As part of the restructure of the Ministry of Justice in 2008, a single NOMS delivery organisation has been created to join together and streamline headquarters, and deliver prison and probation services more effectively. This delivery arm is an executive agency. The expectations on prisons and probation are unchanged: to protect the public and reduce reoffending.

National Offender Management Service: Probation

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will take steps to increase the number of staff at the National Offender Management Service HQ who have a background in probation.

Maria Eagle: The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) fully recognises the benefits of using the specialist skills of probation staff in appropriate posts. Where there is a business need for a particular post to be filled by someone with a probation service employment background, NOMS headquarters groups may second or advertise externally, in line with NOMS and civil service recruitment policy.
	NOMS has recently obtained special permission from the Office of the Civil Service Commissioners for secondments from probation services to last for up to three years, rather than the two years normally allowed by the Commissioners' Recruitment Principles. Certain senior posts in the regional teams within NOMS headquarters are now reserved for probation service personnel on secondment. In addition, NOMS is developing a facility for vacant posts, where appropriate, to be simultaneously advertised internally to Ministry of Justice employees, and as secondment opportunities to probation service employees.

National Offender Management Service: Recruitment

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether probation staff  (a) are permitted to apply for and  (b) may be appointed to vacancies in the National Offender Management Service.

Maria Eagle: Probation service employees may apply for posts in the National Offender Management Service Agency that are advertised externally. They may also apply for internally advertised posts on secondment. Where appropriate, posts may also be reserved solely for secondment of personnel from probation areas or trusts.

Prison Accommodation

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many hospital beds in each prison are being used to ease overcrowding elsewhere in the prison;
	(2)  how many prisons used hospital beds to ease overcrowding elsewhere in the prison in 2009.

Maria Eagle: Places in in-patient health care centres may be added to the certified normal accommodation and/or operational capacity of a prison when routinely used to accommodate patients but not simply to provide additional accommodation to manage population pressures.

Prisoner Escapes

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many escape list prisoners there are in each category of prison accommodation.

Maria Eagle: This information is not held centrally. To collate this information would involve contacting every closed establishment in order to identify how many prisoners are currently on each local escape list. This would incur a disproportionate cost.
	All closed prisons are required to have in place a system to identify and manage prisoners who are placed on the escape list. A prisoner may be placed on the escape list if they pose a current and significant threat of escaping that cannot be addressed through normal security arrangements.

Prisoners Release

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many prisoners were released before their agreed release date in the latest year for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many offences were committed by people released from prison in error in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(3)  how many people released from prison in error were returned to prison in the latest period for which figures are available.

Maria Eagle: As at 21 January 2010, 54 prisoners were recorded as released in error when an authority to retain them in custody was in place. This figure covers the period between 1 January 2009 and 31 December 2009.
	Most prisoners released in error are returned quickly to custody. Of those released in error during 2009 seven remain unaccounted for.
	Figures relating to offences committed by those at large following a release in error are not available centrally. Releases in error are reported to the police who are responsible for apprehending prisoners. Information on further offences committed could only be collated by contacting each prison and police force across England and Wales which would incur disproportionate cost.
	The number of releases in error is small, accounting for less than 0.05 per cent. of discharges from prison. All incidents are subject to investigation. There is no indication from the available information of any significant level of offending by prisoners who should have been in custody at the time.
	These figures have been drawn from live administrative data systems which may be amended at any time. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.
	The number of releases in error reported for 2009 may change, should further incidents be reported.

Prisoners Release: Reoffenders

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offences were committed by prisoners released for Christmas 2009.

Maria Eagle: No offences were recorded against any offender released on temporary licence (ROTL) over the Christmas period. Every prisoner who submits a request for ROTL is seen by a board which consists of prison and probation staff. A stringent risk assessment is carried out before any decision is made to grant the application. Throughout the whole process public protection is paramount.
	These figures have been drawn from live administrative data systems which may be amended at any time. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.
	These figures may change should any further offences relating to this period be identified and reported to National Offender Management Service.

Prisoners: Foreigners

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) male and  (b) female foreign national prisoners there are, broken down by (i) offence category and (ii) length of sentence.

Maria Eagle: The most recent data available relate to June 2009. The following tables give the numbers of  (a) male and  (b) female foreign national prisoners (FNPs) showing both (i) offence category and (ii) length of sentence.
	
		
			  Offence category  Male  Female  Total 
			 Violence against the person 1,588 53 1,640 
			 Sexual offences 881 11 892 
			 Robbery 605 6 611 
			 Burglary 292 8 300 
			 Theft and handling 265 56 322 
			 Fraud and forgery 779 149 928 
			 Drug offences 1,841 297 2,138 
			 Motoring offences 131 0 131 
			 Other offences 479 35 515 
			 Offence not recorded 23 2 25 
			 Total 6,884 618 7,502 
		
	
	
		
			  Sentence length  Male  Female  Total 
			 Less than or equal to six months 588 86 674 
			 Greater than six and less than 12 months 280 36 316 
			 12 months less to than four years 2,015 172 2,188 
			 Four years to less than life 2,973 301 3,273 
			 Indeterminate (including life) 1,028 24 1,052 
			 Total 6,884 618 7,502 
		
	
	In addition to the 7,502 sentenced prisoners, a further 3,848 were either untried, convicted unsentenced, a fine defaulter or non-criminals, giving a total of 11,350.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisoners: Gender Identity Disorder

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 11 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 789-90W, on gender identity disorder: prisoners, from whom the draft guidance on the treatment of prisoners with gender dysphoria is available for  (a) prisons and  (b) prisoners.

Maria Eagle: As was indicated in the previous answer given to the House on 11 January 2010,  Official Report column 789-90W, the responsibility for the production of the draft guidance on the treatment, care and management of transsexual prisoners is split between officials in the Department of Health and Ministry of Justice but in the majority of instances where prison staff have requested advice these have been directed to the latter and more specifically officials in Safer Custody and Offender Policy Group in the National Offender Management Service. As the document is still in draft form it is not readily available for wider distribution beyond policy officials and prison staff but where necessary the advice and information contained within is made available to prisoner(s) who require it.

Prisons: Drugs

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment his Department has made of the merits of  (a) maintenance and  (b) abstinence-based drug treatment programmes for prisoners.

Maria Eagle: Contracts are in place with two groups of researchers for evaluation of different aspects of the Integrated Drug Treatment System (IDTS). This will include the impact of methadone maintenance in particular. The contracts were let in 2008 and each group of researchers will submit a final report by April 2012.
	All accredited drug treatment programmes available in prisons aim ultimately for abstinence and are based on good practice found in the community. Offenders in custody are subject to drug testing and usually receive a range of interventions and support aimed at reducing reoffending. It is practically difficult to pinpoint the precise effect of any one of these interventions on overall drug misuse or reoffending. Evaluations to date specifically of prison drug treatment programmes run in England and Wales are limited and have not always met the highest methodological standards. However, they suggest that accredited programmes can reduce reoffending (Ramsay, M. (ed) (2003), Prisoners' Drug Use and Treatment: Seven Research Studies. Home Office Research Study 267. London: Home Office). International evidence supports these findings.

Prisons: Drugs

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners were participating in  (a) maintenance and  (b) abstinence-based drug treatment programmes on the latest date for which figures are available.

Maria Eagle: In 2008-09, 64,767 prisoners received a clinical drug intervention. Of these 45,135 received detoxification and 19,632 received a maintenance prescription for opioid dependency.
	The table shows the number of commencements on accredited drug treatment programmes for the last period for which data are available. Data are not collected centrally on the number of individual prisoners enrolled on such programmes at any one time.
	Although all accredited drug treatment programmes run in prisons aim ultimately for abstinence, the short duration programme (SDP) has been designed to be appropriate for prisoners undergoing clinical maintenance as well as those that remain abstinent.
	
		
			  Intervention type (2008-09)  Intervention starts (rounded to nearest 10) 
			 12-Step Programme 850 
			 Therapeutic Communities 260 
			   
			 Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) programmes(1) 9,650 
			  Of which:  
			 Short Duration Programme (5,550) 
			 Total 10,760 
			 (1) Prisons have in place a range of CBT accredited drug programmes, including: PASRO (Prisoner Addressing Substance Related Offending), STOP (Substance Treatment and Offending Programme), FOCUS (high security prisons only) and the Short Duration Programme.

Prisons: Mother and Baby Units

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many women prisoners have given birth since April 2009;
	(2)  how many women became pregnant while serving a prison sentence in the last year for which data are available.

Maria Eagle: Information on the number of women who have given birth in prison or became pregnant while serving a prison sentence is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost, as in order to provide this information staff would need to look at each individual's record.
	In addition, it would not be possible to guarantee the accuracy of the data about when women become pregnant as this would be reliant on information being provided by the prisoners themselves.

Probation

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he plans to take to increase the level of contact time between probation staff and offenders.

Maria Eagle: The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is taking a number of actions to increase the amount of contact time between probation staff and offenders. These include:
	allocating resources to the assessment and management of offenders according to the level of risk;
	as part of the Probation Trusts Programme all areas (including locally initiated mergers) have identified efficiencies through for example the reduction in management overheads, and development, of shared services, to the benefit of front line staffing levels;
	a national programme of specifying probation work, and benchmarking performance, to support the effective deployment of front line staff;
	identifying opportunities for reducing bureaucracy and other demands currently placed on front-line staff; and
	expanding the use of video conferencing to reduce the time probation staff spend travelling to interview prisoners.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture: Subsidies

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to respond to the Parliamentary Ombudsman's report entitled "Cold Comfort: the Administration of the 2005 Single Payment Scheme by the Rural Payments Agency".

Jim Fitzpatrick: holding answer 19 January 2010
	The Department's views were relayed to the Parliamentary Ombudsman at various stages during the course of her investigations and are referred to in the report itself. A formal response will be made to any subsequent report the Public Administration Select Committee decides to produce on the issue.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how cross-compliance regulations in respect of single payments and the Integrated Administration and Control System scheme apply to turbines and related infrastructure built on farmland; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Any area of farm land occupied by a wind turbine, electricity pylon or other item of non-agricultural infrastructure would not form part of the agricultural area eligible to support claims under the single payment scheme. As such the standards of cross-compliance would not apply to these features.

Chemicals: Animal Experiments

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will bring forward proposals to require the chemical industry to minimise the number of animals used in testing covered by the provisions of the EU Regulation on the registration, evaluation and authorisation of chemicals.

Dan Norris: The Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) Regulation contains strong provisions to minimise the amount of animal testing by EU-based companies when compiling their substance registration dossiers. These require that animal tests be the last resort, with the use of non-animal test methods instead wherever possible, and prohibit the repetition and duplication of animal tests. REACH also requires that when preparing registration dossiers, data derived from animal tests must be shared between all members of a Substance Information Exchange Forum (SIEF) in order to achieve this. Where further tests are necessary to complete registrations for substances on the market in quantities of 10 tonnes or more per year, then proposals must be submitted to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) for approval before any such tests are undertaken, so pre-emptive testing would be illegal. Part of this approval process involves a 45-day public consultation on the test proposals, so that third parties have the opportunity to provide information on the substance that would render the proposed animal tests unnecessary.
	In order to help companies address the issue of using animal tests when preparing registration dossiers, a short guidance note has been published on the DEFRA website:
	www.defra.gov.uk/environment/quality/chemicals/reach/index.htm
	which draws attention to these legal requirements, and suggests a number of possible non-animal alternative test methods including chemical grouping and read-across approaches, use of (Quantitative) Structural Activity Relationships (QSARs), and in vitro tests. Information can also be provided by way of a weight of evidence assessment, and certain tests specified in REACH may also be waived where it can be shown that exposure of humans or the environment to a substance is insignificant or absent.
	It is important that companies remember that they should not be undertaking animal testing for REACH registration before their test proposals are approved by ECHA as being necessary. Companies should actively look for alternatives to animal testing wherever possible, and refer to the REACH Test Methods Regulation for what is available for use. Other internationally-valid non-animal test methods that do not appear in the Test Methods Regulation may also be used. However, where animal tests are the last resort, then companies should use the most refined method possible to reduce the numbers of animals involved.
	ECHA has published detailed guidance on data-sharing and information requirements for the REACH registration process on its website, and the UK REACH Competent Authority (provided by the Health and Safety Executive) is also shortly to publish a guidance leaflet for industry on animal testing and use of alternatives on its website. This will explain the REACH testing obligations, help with identifying the most appropriate test method, with information on the various available non-animal test methods.

Departmental Assets

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what departmental assets are planned to be sold in  (a) 2009-10 and  (b) 2010-11; what the (i) description and (ii) book value is of each such asset; what the expected revenue is from each such sale; and by what date each asset is expected to have been sold.

Dan Norris: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 11 January 2010,  Official Report, column 676W.
	The Government have stated their intention to realise £16 billion from asset and property sales over the period by 2013-14. On 7 December the Government published the Operational Efficiency Programme: Asset Portfolio, setting out the next steps for the delivery of the £16 billion by 2013-14.
	DEFRA has approximately £6.9 million (book value £10.2 million) of surplus properties for disposal in 2009-10, arising from the sale of land, residential and office premises. Anticipated disposals from land and laboratory premises are expected to realise £9 million in 2010-11 (book value £8 million).
	Not all future asset disposals have been finalised, and for reasons of commercial sensitivity it is not possible to identify publicly each asset to be disposed of, or to set out deadlines for sales as this can have a negative impact on values.
	DEFRA's latest published asset management strategy is available on its website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/about/how/busplan/spending-review/docs/asset-management-strategy.pdf
	The strategy is currently being updated following the creation of the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and the transfer of certain functions from DEFRA to DECC, and it is planned that the new version of the strategy will be published in the spring.

Departmental Carbon Emissions

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies plan to sign up to the 10:10 campaign to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in 2010.

Dan Norris: DEFRA has a long-term commitment to reduce its carbon emissions. Performance in 2008-09 shows that DEFRA's carbon emissions from offices has reduced by 18 per cent. on the 1999-2000 baseline, exceeding the 2010 Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate (SOGE) target by 6 per cent. Since 2006-07 the Department has delivered a reduction of 4 per cent. carbon emissions (year on year) from its estate through its Carbon Reduction Programme.
	DEFRA's achievements have been recognised through the award of the Carbon Trust Standard in May 2008, where the Department was one of the first 12 pathfinder organisations to receive the award. This built upon the earlier success of the Department achieving Energy Efficiency Accreditation Scheme (EEAS) status in July 2007. Both of these awards clearly demonstrate that DEFRA has an ongoing commitment to long-term, year on year carbon emissions reductions.
	The Department is expecting to continue to deliver significant year on year savings, anticipated at as much as 6 per cent. year on year.
	A strategic long-term investment plan allows the delivery of projects which provide long-term benefits through reducing energy demand and minimising the need to reinvest in the short to medium term. To disrupt these long-term plans in order to achieve 10:10 would impact negatively on DEFRA's ability to achieve its long-term goals and would not deliver value for money. However, the combination of DEFRA's long-term plans, a minimum 6 per cent. reduction in 2010 and a short- term call to action all constitute a credible contribution to tackling climate change.
	In light of the above, achieving a 10 per cent. saving across the DEFRA Estate in a single year would require my Department to divert significant funds from its long-term delivery plan; therefore The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and its Executive Agencies have not signed up to the 10:10 campaign.

Departmental Information and Communications Technology

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what pay band his Department's Chief Information Officer (CIO) is employed; whether the CIO is employed on a fixed-term or permanent contract; and what the size is of the budget for which the CIO is responsible in the period 2009-10.

Dan Norris: DEFRA's chief information officer is employed as a senior civil servant (SCS-Contractor) on a fixed term contract basis. The size of the budget the CIO is responsible for is £76 million for 2009-10.

Departmental Internet

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which websites his Department's staff are blocked from accessing on departmental networked computers.

Dan Norris: The Department has blocked access to:
	www.facebook.com
	There are also a number of other websites that the Department blocks for reasons of IT security. The security policies informing these IT security decisions are in line with HMG Security Policy Framework (SPF)
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/spf.aspx

Departmental Internet

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much has been spent on  (a) strategy and planning,  (b) design and build,  (c) hosting and infrastructure,  (d) content provision and  (e) testing and evaluation for his Department's websites in each of the last three years; and what budget has been allocated for each such activity in 2009-10.

Dan Norris: DEFRA website costs are as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			   2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			 Strategy and planning n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Design and build 0 0 59,447 56,979 
			 Hosting and infrastructure n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Content provision 340,000 340,000 340,000 340,000 
			 Testing and evaluation 0 0 50,780 14,170 
		
	
	The costs shown for Content Provision are essentially the staff cost for the central team with responsibility for updating and maintaining DEFRA's websites. An element of their work is Strategy and Planning, but the costs of such work cannot be easily separated.
	This central team is also responsible for the DEFRA intranet, and the staff costs for the external DEFRA website alone cannot be readily disaggregated.
	The costs shown in 2008-09 and 2009-10 under Design and Build and Testing and Evaluation are the costs for the project to redevelop the DEFRA website. The website was relaunched in September 2009, the first major website redesign since DEFRA came into being in 2001. The total cost of this work, spread over two years, was £181,378.
	Hosting and Infrastructure of the DEFRA website-as well as a range of IT applications-are provided as part of DEFRA's overall IT service provision, and the costs of this aspect of website maintenance cannot be readily disaggregated.

Departmental Pay

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many  (a) year-end and  (b) in-year bonuses were paid to officials in his Department in each of the last three years; and how much was paid in such bonuses in each such year.

Dan Norris: An element of DEFRA's overall pay award is allocated to non-consolidated variable pay related to performance. These payments are used to drive high performance and form part of the pay award for members of staff who demonstrate exceptional performance, for example by exceeding targets set or meeting challenging objectives.
	Non-consolidated variable pay awards are funded from within existing pay bill controls, and have to be re-earned each year against pre-determined targets and, as such, do not add to future pay bill costs. The percentage of the pay bill set aside for performance-related awards for the SCS is based on recommendations from the independent Senior Salaries Review Body.
	The following table details the number and the total amount of non-consolidated variable pay awards awarded under DEFRA's standard pay and performance management process for the three most recent performance years for which the relevant payments have been published in the Department's accounts.
	For DEFRA, the data cover staff at grade 6 and below in core-DEFRA and those Executive agencies covered by the core-Department's terms and conditions i.e. Animal Health, Veterinary Medicines Directorate and the Marine and Fisheries Agency. They also include senior civil servants in core-DEFRA and its Executive agencies (Animal Health, Veterinary Medicines Directorate, Marine and Fisheries Agency, Rural Payments Agency, Veterinary Laboratories Agency, Centre for the Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science and the Central Science Laboratory-which is now part of the Food and Environment Research Agency, which was created on 1 April 2009.
	For those Executive agencies that operate delegated pay arrangements (Rural Payments Agency (RPA), Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA), Centre for the Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) and the Central Science Laboratory (CSL), which is now part of the Food and Environment Research Agency, which was created on 1 April 2009, the data cover staff at grade 6 and below only.
	
		
			  Department  Number of staff who received a non-consolidated performance payment  Total amount of payments (£)  Wages and salaries for the year (£)  Non-consolidated performance payments as a percentage of wages and salaries 
			  Performance year 2005-06 
			 DEFRA 2,395 3,171,792 294,379,000 1.1 
			 VLA 251 39,120 39,485,000 0.1 
			 RPA 505 243,072 88,093,000 0.3 
			 CEFAS 511 566,766 16,881,000 3.3 
			 CSL 260 176,901 21,703,000 0.8 
			  
			  Performance year 2006-07 
			 DEFRA 1,959 3,235,664 252,501,000 1.3 
			 VLA 212 45,327 40,846,000 0.1 
			 RPA 813 425,417 99,667,000 0.4 
			 CEFAS 506 610,125 19,203,000 3.2 
			 CSL 328 233,049 22,127,000 1.1 
			  
			  Performance year 2007-08 
			 DEFRA 1,914 3,072,554 211,900,000 1.5 
			 VLA 226 47,409 40,028,000 0.1 
			 RPA 1,126 507,572 99,405,000 0.5 
			 CEFAS 496 773,747 19,160,000 3.9 
			 CSL 332 264,280 22,657,000 1.2 
		
	
	CEFAS has relatively higher non-consolidated pay when compared as a percentage against the DEFRA network, because they have specifically worked to structure a total rewards package with a greater non consolidated pay element, that is directly performance based and must be re-earned each year. This places a greater link between performance and reward and while their percentage of non consolidated pay is larger than others this is more than offset by their consolidated pay (i.e. salaries) which is low relative to the DEFRA network and Whitehall.

Departmental Training

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many sessions of media training were organised for Ministers in his Department in each of the last three years.

Dan Norris: Training is provided to Ministers on a range of issues including handling the media, as part of their induction and continuing development in order to carry out their duties effectively under the ministerial code.

Fly Tipping: Kent

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of incidents of fly-tipping in  (a) Ashford constituency and  (b) Kent in each of the last five years.

Dan Norris: The number of incidents of fly-tipping recorded on the Flycapture database by  (a) Ashford borough council and  (b) all local authorities in Kent in each of the last five years is as follows:
	
		
			   Ashford borough council  Kent local authorities (including Ashford) 
			 2004-05 950 31,298 
			 2005-06 1,177 38,878 
			 2006-07 1,450 38,333 
			 2007-08 1,177 27,702 
			 2008-09 1,123 21.038 
		
	
	The number of incidents of fly-tipping recorded as having been dealt with by local authorities on the Flycapture database is published annually on the DEFRA website:
	www.defra.gov.uk/environment/quality/local/flytipping/flycapture-data.htm
	Incidents of fly-tipping cleared from private land by the landowner are not recorded.

Garages and Petrol Stations: Contamination

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what duties there are on the owner of a rental petrol forecourt site to decontaminate the site once its use as a petrol station has ceased; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Norris: There are various measures which create duties to address contamination, depending on the circumstances of the case. Contaminated land legislation (Part 2A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990) makes persons liable for the cost of remediating a site if they caused or knowingly permitted it to become contaminated land. This allows direct action to be taken by regulators, and it creates an incentive for operators to avoid causing contamination in the first place, and to clean it up voluntarily if it occurs. For contamination caused after 1 March 2009, the Environmental Damage (Prevention and Remediation) Regulations 2009 would also be applicable in similar circumstances and to achieve similar objectives to Part 2A of the 1990 Act.
	Legislation also directly applies to prevent contamination during the operation of a petrol station. Under the Groundwater Regulations 2009 there is a code of practice to prevent hazardous substances from reaching groundwater from underground tanks, such as those at petrol stations. The Environment Agency can serve a notice on the operator if it is likely that the code of practice is not being complied with. The Agency also has powers under the Anti-pollution Works Notices Regulations 1999 to serve notices where there is a threat of pollution to controlled waters or to require clean up where pollution of controlled waters has occurred.
	Where a petrol forecourt is operated under a rental agreement, there may be further duties on the operator to deal with contamination as an indirect result of legislation.

Rural Payments Agency: Pay

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the monetary value of bonuses awarded to officials of the Rural Payments Agency in each of the last five years.

Dan Norris: The payments made for non-consolidated performance payments awarded to employees at the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) in the last five years is shown in the following table:
	
		
			   Actual payment totals (£)  Percentage of the RPA paybill 
			 2004-05 281,000 0.40 
			 2005-06 252,000 0.37 
			 2006-07 302,000 0.43 
			 2007-08 452,000 0.52 
			 2008-09 559,000 0.48 
		
	
	RPA performance payments are paid to RPA staff working on all aspects of the agency's work which includes managing and making payments for some 60 schemes, making payments on a further 30 schemes delivered by others, carrying out inspections and operating the British Cattle Movement Service under two reward schemes:
	(a) Staff who have achieved the required performance assessment following the end of year individual performance review. This arrangement is negotiated each year with the trade union side; and
	(b) A special recognition scheme was introduced in 2007 and exists to recognise instances of people making additional or outstanding contributions to RPA's work, giving an employee up to £500 for an outstanding performance.
	These figures include non-consolidated performance payments paid to senior civil servants (SCS). The percentage of the pay bill set aside for performance-related awards for the SCS is based on recommendations from the independent senior salaries review body.

Wind Power: Planning Permission

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the Environment Agency receives payment from money submitted as payment with wind farm planning applications to cover the cost of its contribution to the planning process; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Norris: The Environment Agency does not receive any payment from money submitted as payment for wind farm planning applications, or from any other planning applications. The Environment Agency is a statutory consultee in the planning process, and this activity is funded by its grant funding from central Government.

TRANSPORT

Aviation: Security

Greg Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what security checks will apply in respect of passengers who refuse to be scanned by an airport full body scanner.

Paul Clark: The Government are not proposing to offer an alternative method of search for passengers refusing to use a body scanner.
	Passengers who are selected for scanning, but decline to use the scanner, will not be permitted to fly.

Aviation: Security

Greg Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether full body scanners will be used to scan children at airports.

Paul Clark: We are confident that the introduction of these scanners is a proportionate and necessary next step in enhancing security of passengers, and that their use is consistent with the Protection of Children Act 1978. We will therefore be expecting children to use the scanners.

Aviation: Security

Greg Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment he has made of the implications for human rights of the use of full body scanners at airports; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Clark: The Department for Transport is working with the industry and other Government Departments to produce a code of practice for the operation of body scanners. This will include an assessment of the legal, health and privacy issues surrounding their deployment.

Aviation: Security

Greg Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport for how long images obtained by airport full body scanners will be stored.

Paul Clark: The equipment being deployed in airports does not have the capacity to save an image in any form. Images are viewed remotely from the machine, and are deleted immediately after analysis. Images cannot be recovered at a later date from the machines.

Car Sharing: Road Traffic

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what modelling the Government has done on  (a) changes in car sharing rates and  (b) the effect such changes have on road congestion; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the outcomes of such modelling.

Sadiq Khan: The Department for Transport has not modelled changes in car sharing rates. However, research was published by DFT in 2005 Smarter Choice-Changing the way we travel (Cairns S, Stoman L, Newson C, Anable J, Kirkbride A and Goodwin P; 2004). This research analysed the potential impact of car sharing on commuting vehicle trips and vehicle mileage. The report is available at:
	http://dft.gov.uk/pgr/sustainable/smarterchoices/ctwwt/

Employment Tribunals Service

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many industrial tribunals relating to his Department there have been in each of the last five years; and what the cost to his Department was of such tribunals in each year.

Chris Mole: The total number of employment tribunal cases recorded in each of the last five years and the costs are broken down in the following table and also include figures to date for 2009-10:
	
		
			  Financial year  Number  Cost (£) 
			 2009-10 21 86,917.61 
			 2008-09 37 312,679.34 
			 2007-08 29 156,513.65 
			 2006-07 8 7,602.21 
			 2005-06 6 20,196.71 
			 2004-05 14 15,000.00 
			 Total 115 598,909.52 
		
	
	The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is unable to provide the cost element to this question as the information is not held centrally and to obtain it will incur disproportionate costs. For the same reason the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency is unable to provide costs for 2004-05.

First Capital Connect: Industrial Disputes

Anne Main: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport on what date the Secretary of State was first notified of the recent industrial action by drivers on the First Capital Connect Thameslink route.

Chris Mole: The Secretary of State was first notified of the recent concerted action by drivers on the First Capital Connect Thameslink route on 26 October 2009.

First Capital Connect: Industrial Disputes

Anne Main: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether the recent industrial action by drivers on the First Capital Connect Thameslink route constitutes a force majeure event under the terms of the franchise agreement with First Capital Connect.

Chris Mole: The Secretary of State was satisfied that in this instance the concerted action that was taken by the drivers on the First Capital Connect Thameslink route was industrial action for the purposes of schedule 10.4 of the franchise agreement, and therefore a force majeure event.

First Capital Connect: Industrial Disputes

Anne Main: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what meetings Ministers in his Department have had with the management of First Capital Connect to discuss industrial action by drivers on the First Capital Connect Thameslink route in the last three months.

Chris Mole: The Secretary of State met with the managing director of First Capital Connect on 12 November 2009 to discuss the industrial action. Officials in the Department for Transport have also met with First Capital Connect on numerous occasions, within this period.
	The Secretary of State has also spoken with the chief executive of First Group about First Capital Connect's performance.

Heathrow Airport

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what modelling the Government has done on the economic and environmental effects of a third runway at Heathrow; and if he will place a copy in the Library of the outcomes of such modelling.

Paul Clark: The Department for Transport published its latest assessment of the economic and environmental effects of a third runway at Heathrow in Adding Capacity at Heathrow Airport-Impact Assessment in January 2009. The publication coincided with the Secretary of State for Transport's announcement of his policy decisions on the future development of Heathrow airport. Copies of the published documents, and earlier technical reports on the environmental modelling, have all been deposited in the Library.

Immobilisation of Vehicles

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many  (a) cars,  (b) vans,  (c) lorries and  (d) motorcycles of each make were (i) clamped and (ii) crushed in each of the last three years; in what circumstances and under what legislative authority such vehicles are (A) clamped and (B) crushed; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Clark: We do not keep information on the number of vehicles clamped or crushed by vehicle type. However, the following table provides the total number of vehicles wheel clamped; disposed of by crushing or via auction and immobilised in each of the last three calendar years.
	
		
			   Unlicensed Vehicles (DVLA)  Unroadworthy Vehicles (VOSA) 
			   Clamped  Crushed or auctioned  Immobilised 
			 2009 113,288 37,758 (1)3,481 
			 2008 124,428 38,531 n/a 
			 2007 108,385 39,872 n/a 
			 (1) May to December. 
		
	
	The Department for Transport employs the use of wheel clamping and immobilisation of unlicensed and un-roadworthy vehicles. The legislative authority is set out in the Vehicle Excise Duty (Immobilisation, Removal and Disposal of Vehicles) Regulations 1997, as amended and the Road Safety (Immobilisation, Removal and Disposal) Regulations 2009.

Immobilisation of Vehicles: South East

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many cars have been impounded in  (a) Southend West constituency,  (b) Essex,  (c) the Metropolitan Police area of London and  (d) England and Wales in each year since 2005; and at what total cost in each case in each such year.

Paul Clark: It is not possible to provide the number of cars impounded or information by geographical area. A contract is in place to provide a wheel-clamping service, which may lead to impounding, on vehicles in the United Kingdom. The contract is on a fixed price basis for the entire service. Neither costs of impounding individual vehicles, nor costs of the operation within geographical locations are available.

London and South Eastern Railway: Snow and Ice

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what discussions his Department has had with Southeastern Railway on recent disruptions to its service caused by snow and ice.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport communicated regularly with Southeastern and Network Rail during the recent service disruption caused by snow and ice. The Department was informed of the services that would be operating, taking into account the availability of infrastructure and trains, and challenged Southeastern to run as full a service as possible. The Department is now collecting information on the service that was offered to understand whether or not any improvements can be made to rail services during future adverse weather.

Motor Vehicles: Excise Duties

Robert Goodwill: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the estimated average cost is of processing a vehicle excise duty application  (a) at a post office,  (b) by post and  (c) online.

Paul Clark: The average cost for processing a vehicle excise duty application during 2009-10 is as follows:
	 (a) Post Office: £1.47
	 (b) Not available
	 (c) 95 pence.

Railways: Hunting

David Drew: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what steps his Department has taken following the incident on 31 December 2009 in which six foxhounds belonging to the Duke of Beaufort's hunt were killed by a high-speed passenger train near Wootton Bassett; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mole: The day-to-day running of the railways, and their safety is a matter for rail operators and the Office of Rail Regulation as the independent rail safety regulator.
	The incident was included in the daily performance log submitted to the Department by the train operator involved. Aside from this, the Department is not involved in operational incidents of this nature (animals on the line).

Railways: Kent

Howard Stoate: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what information his Department holds on the number of scheduled trains operated by each franchised train operating company serving Kent which  (a) were cancelled and  (b) arrived late in each of the last five years.

Chris Mole: The information requested is held by Network Rail but is also given in the following table. The table gives the information for each of the last five complete financial years, in relation to Southeastern trains which operates franchised rail passenger services in Kent.
	
		
			  Southeastern 
			   Trains cancelled  Trains late at destination 
			 2004-05 7,825 85,078 
			 2005-06 6,341 70,737 
			 2006-07 5,227 60,576 
			 2007-08 5,102 49,592 
			 2008-09 7,326 51,800 
			  Note: Commuter trains are classified as 'late' if they arrive at destination five or more minutes later than their scheduled arrival time.

Railways: North West

Ben Chapman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent discussions he has had on the establishment of a high speed rail link between the North West and London.

Chris Mole: The Secretary of State has now received High Speed Two's report which he is considering. Both the Secretary of State and his ministerial colleagues continue to meet regularly with key stakeholders to discuss a range of transport issues, including high speed rail.

Railways: Standards

Howard Stoate: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many and what percentage of scheduled trains operated by each franchised train operating company in England  (a) were cancelled and  (b) arrived late in each of the last five years.

Chris Mole: The information requested is held by Network Rail but is also given in the following tables. The tables give the information for each of the last five complete financial years.
	
		
			  2004-05 
			  Train operating company  Trains cancelled  Trains late at destination  Percentage cancelled  Percentage late 
			 c2c 1,307 6,120 1.2 5.6 
			 Chiltern Railways 825 6,430 0.9 6.6 
			 Crosscountry 1,432 27,557 1.6 30.2 
			 East Coast 559 13,119 1.4 32.4 
			 East Midlands Trains 1,857 32,643 1.4 24.4 
			 First Capital Connect 3,982 39,741 1.2 12.4 
			 First Great Western 4,980 80,156 1.1 17.3 
			 First TransPennine Express 1,462 21,002 1.7 23.7 
			 London Midland 5,902 77,913 1.7 22.0 
			 London Overground 2,921 17,353 2.2 13.3 
			 Merseyrail 2,153 9,768 1.1 4.8 
			 National Express East Anglia 5,658 58,764 1.0 10.6 
			 Northern Rail 6,612 117,899 0.8 14.6 
			 South West Trains 6,532 97,076 1.1 16.8 
			 Southeastern 7,825 85,078 1.3 14.5 
			 Southern 8,989 103,020 1.5 16.8 
			 Virgin Trains 1,812 21,976 2.9 35.2 
		
	
	
		
			  2005-06 
			  Train operating company  Trains cancelled  Trains late at destination  Percentage cancelled  Percentage late 
			 c2c 1,343 6,501 1.2 5.9 
			 Chiltern Railways 1,366 6,906 1.4 6.9 
			 Crosscountry 1,432 23,092 1.5 25.0 
			 East Coast 546 9,265 1.3 22.9 
			 East Midlands Trains 1,952 26,983 1.5 20.1 
			 First Capital Connect 5,565 34,758 1.7 10.6 
			 First Great Western 4,609 86,309 1.0 18.2 
			 First TransPennine Express 856 15,926 1.1 19.6 
			 London Midland 6,203 61,603 1.6 15.5 
			 London Overground 2,753 10,322 2.1 7.9 
			 Merseyrail 3,038 12,980 1.5 6.3 
			 National Express East Anglia 7,261 70,575 1.3 12.6 
			 Northern Rail 6,116 104,717 0.7 12.8 
			 South West Trains 5,663 54,355 0.9 9.1 
			 Southeastern 6,341 70,737 1.1 12.2 
			 Southern 6,892 68,449 1.1 10.8 
			 Virgin Trains 688 16,959 1.0 24.1 
		
	
	
		
			  2006-07 
			  Train operating company  Trains cancelled  Trains late at destination  Percentage cancelled  Percentage late 
			 c2c 1,152 5,045 1.1 4.6 
			 Chiltern Railways 938 5,440 0.9 5.3 
			 Crosscountry 1,382 21,127 1.4 21.5 
			 East Coast 805 9,728 1.9 23.5 
			 East Midlands Trains 1,970 19,609 1.5 14.5 
			 First Capital Connect 5,166 34,061 1.6 10.3 
			 First Great Western 7,045 80,288 1.5 17.0 
			 First TransPennine Express 981 14,823 1.0 15.9 
			 London Midland 6,198 48,346 1.5 11.9 
			 London Overground 2,301 9,381 1.7 7.1 
			 Merseyrail 2,077 13,255 1.0 6.5 
			 National Express East Anglia 9,207 68,694 1.6 11.8 
			 Northern Rail 7,626 93,989 1.0 11.8 
			 South West Trains 6,034 52,815 1.0 8.9 
			 Southeastern 5,227 60,576 0.9 10.6 
			 Southern 5,954 62,531 0.9 9.8 
			 Virgin Trains 878 14,131 1.3 20.1 
		
	
	
		
			  2007-08 
			  Train operating company  Trains cancelled  Trains late at destination  Percentage cancelled  Percentage late 
			 c2c 1,249 4,920 1.1 4.4 
			 Chiltern Railways 715 4,448 0.7 4.3 
			 Crosscountry 1,267 17,698 1.3 18.2 
			 East Coast 997 9,976 2.3 23.1 
			 East Midlands Trains 2,197 18,865 1.6 14.0 
			 First Capital Connect 4,280 26,962 1.3 8.1 
			 First Great Western 8,153 79,244 1.8 17.1 
			 First TransPennine Express 897 12,456 0.9 12.9 
			 London Midland 5,623 38,846 1.4 9.7 
			 London Overground 2,376 9,336 1.8 6.9 
			 Merseyrail 1,847 9,011 0.9 4.4 
			 National Express East Anglia 7,307 52,113 1.2 8.8 
			 Northern Rail 8,670 83,594 1.1 10.4 
			 South West Trains 3,890 41,668 0.7 7.1 
			 Southeastern 5,102 49,592 0.9 8.5 
			 Southern 5,627 60,619 0.9 9.3 
			 Virgin Trains 678 15,248 0.9 20.4 
		
	
	
		
			  2008-09 
			  Train operating company  Trains cancelled  Trains late  Percentage cancelled  Percentage late 
			 c2c 946 4,388 0.8 3.9 
			 Chiltern Railways 738 4,360 0.7 4.1 
			 Crosscountry 1,157 13,969 1.2 14.3 
			 East Coast 625 8,351 1.4 18.8 
			 East Midlands Trains 1,351 17,817 1.0 12.7 
			 First Capital Connect 5,533 24,477 1.7 7.3 
			 First Great Western 4,509 48,580 0.9 9.9 
			 First TransPennine Express 1,001 14,916 1.0 15.0 
			 London Midland 7,558 45,464 1.9 11.6 
			 London Overground 1,339 9,734 0.9 6.8 
			 Merseyrail 1,613 8,452 0.8' 4.2 
			 National Express East Anglia 6,493 53,422 1.1 9.0 
			 Northern Rail 6,920 77,156 0.8 9.4 
			 South West Trains 6,327 34,348 1.1 5.8 
			 Southeastern 7,326 51,800 1.2 8.8 
			 Southern 9,629 66,578 1.3 9.1 
			 Virgin Trains 2,205 23,779 2.5 26.6 
			  Note: Commuter trains are classified as 'late' if they arrive at destination five or more minutes later than their scheduled arrival time. Intercity trains are classified as late if they arrive 10 or more minutes later than the scheduled arrival time.

Roads: Royal Mail

Damian Green: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many requests the Highways Agency has received from Royal Mail to clear the roads in  (a) Ashford and  (b) Kent in the last two years.

Chris Mole: The Highways Agency is responsible for the Strategic Road Network. It has not received any requests from Royal Mail to clear local authority or strategic roads either in Ashford or Kent in the last two years.

Rolling Stock: Construction

Jim Cousins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when he expects to announce the location of the facility to assemble the super express Agility train; what locations are under consideration; and how many such trains he expects to comprise the super express fleet.

Chris Mole: The location of the manufacturing facility is a matter for Hitachi. The company has a number of locations under consideration, and I understand that it will make an announcement shortly. The super express fleet will comprise up to 1,400 rail vehicles.

Southend Airport

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the expansion of Southend airport on the local community in respect of  (a) road traffic and  (b) noise in the last three years; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  which  (a) individuals and  (b) organisations he consulted regarding the expansion of Southend airport; if he will place in the Library copies of the representations he has received to date on this matter; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what discussions  (a) he,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) departmental officials have had with representatives of BAA plc on proposals for the expansion of Southend airport in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Clark: The Department for Transport has not consulted on the proposals to expand Southend airport, nor has it made any assessment of the effect of the proposed expansion on the local community in respect of road traffic or noise.
	There have been no discussions between the Department for Transport and BAA on proposals for the expansion of Southend airport. Southend airport was purchased in December 2008 by Stobart Group Ltd. from Regional Airports Ltd.
	The Future of Air Transport White Paper identified Southend airport as having a valuable role in meeting local demand and the potential to contribute to regional economic development. The White Paper supported further development in principle, subject to relevant environmental considerations. On 20 January Southend council made a decision to support the planning application for expansion proposals at Southend airport. The council's recommendation has now been submitted to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for him to consider whether to call in the application for his own determination.

SCOTLAND

Departmental Official Engagements

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland at what speaking events  (a) he and  (b) his Under-Secretary of State has been represented by (i) a special adviser and (ii) another elected official from the Scotland Office since October 2007; for what reasons John McTernan withdrew from the Reform Scotland debate scheduled for 4 February 2010; on what date his Department informed Reform Scotland that he was unavailable to attend that debate; by what form of communication his Department informed Reform Scotland that John McTernan would take part in that debate; on what date this communication was sent; and on what date his Department informed Reform Scotland that the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State would attend the event.

Jim Murphy: The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (PuSofS) and I have never been represented by a special adviser at a speaking event and the Scotland Office does not have elected officials.
	The Scotland Office confirmed with Reform Scotland on 18 January 2010 that PuSofS would attend this debate if timing of parliamentary business allowed for this.

Departmental Publications

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what the  (a) total,  (b) production and  (c) staff cost was of the preparation and publication of his Department's White Paper on Scotland's future in the United Kingdom; how many copies were printed; and to whom they were distributed.

Ann McKechin: The production cost of Scotland's Future in the United Kingdom, including typesetting, printing, binding, mailing and TSO fees was £5,968.39. The preparation of the White Paper was the work of civil servants employed in the Scotland Office as part of their normal duties and therefore incurred no additional cost. A total of 1,055 copies were printed; these were divided between the Scotland Office, Parliament and TSO. Of these 750 were used by the Scotland Office for laying in Parliament, distribution to stakeholders and internal departmental use.

Fuel: Taxation

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what  (a) written correspondence,  (b) electronic correspondence,  (c) meetings and  (d) other communications he had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on (i) the Scottish economy and (ii) road fuel duty taxation between August 2008 and March 2009.

Ann McKechin: My right hon. Friend is in regular contact with a range of Cabinet Ministers on issues affecting Scotland, and has been since his appointment in October 2008.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Arrest Warrants

Denis MacShane: To ask the Solicitor-General if she will lift the European Arrest Warrant which has led to the detention of Wansanatha Bulugah Aitya in Frankfurt.

Vera Baird: The European Arrest Warrant was executed on 27 December 2009 and the extradition process is under way in Germany.
	A decision in an individual case not to pursue an extradition request would in any event be made by the relevant prosecuting agency, not by me or any other Minister.

Royal Family: Wills

Norman Baker: To ask the Solicitor-General in which official capacity the then Attorney-General acted in discussions with  (a) Buckingham Palace,  (b) the then Senior President of the Family Division and  (c) Farrers in respect of the creation of a practice for the sealing of royal wills.

Vera Baird: In discussing the practice for the sealing of royal wills, the Attorney-General acts in his capacity as Attorney-General, acting in the public interest.

OLYMPICS

Departmental Sick Leave

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many working days were lost due to  (a) illness and  (b) stress of employees within her Office in each of the last three years.

Tessa Jowell: My office is staffed by employees of the Cabinet Office. departmental reports are published quarterly giving details of sickness absences, and these are available at:
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/reports/absence.aspx
	Copies are also available in the Libraries of the House.
	Information for absences from my office can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Olympic Games 2012: Contracts

Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many businesses based in  (a) England,  (b) Scotland,  (c) Wales,  (d) Northern Ireland and  (e) locations outside the UK have (i) registered with the London 2012 Business Network and (ii) secured Olympic contracts at each location.

Ian Lucas: I have been asked to reply.
	The answer to the question is as follows:
	The London 2012 Business Network hosts CompeteFor. CompeteFor is the chosen website of London 2012 for the publication of Games-related contract opportunities. Numbers of companies registered on CompeteFor and contracts awarded to CompeteFor suppliers are as follows;
	
		
			  Region  Registrations  Contracts awarded to CompeteFor suppliers 
			 East of England 11,336 54 
			 East Midlands 5,265 14 
			 London 29,106 236 
			 North East 2,089 12 
			 North West 5,575 34 
			 South East 17,596 104 
			 South West 5,829 24 
			 West Midlands 7,565 194 
			 Yorkshire 4,922 20 
			 Northern Ireland 1,109 1 
			 Scotland 2,806 7 
			 Wales 2,200 2 
			 Non-UK 4,376 3 
			 Total 100,556 707 
		
	
	It is important to note that these are the number of awarded contracts that have been recorded on the site by buyers and there will be other contracts that have been awarded, but not yet recorded. In total 4,700 contracts have been placed on CompeteFor.

Olympic Games 2012: Contracts

Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what the cost has been of maintaining the London 2012 Business Network in each year since its establishment.

Ian Lucas: I have been asked to reply.
	The answer is as follows:
	 ( a) CompeteFor cost £3.633 million to develop, which included concept development, specification, implementation and testing, and establishing the support structure.
	 (b) Running costs are as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 Year 1 (December 2007 to March 2008) 220,000 
			 Year 2 (April 2008 to March 2009) 1.241 million 
			 Year 3 (April 2009 to March 2010)-projected at 1.241 million

Olympic Games 2012: Illegal Immigrants

Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Olympics 
	(1)  how many arrests have been made of illegal immigrants working on the Olympic site since construction began;
	(2)  what checks the Government makes to ensure that employees working on the Olympic site are entitled to work in the UK;
	(3)  whether any companies working on the Olympic site have been fined for the employment of illegal immigrants since construction began.

Phil Woolas: I have been asked to reply.
	Between 1 April 2009 and 10 December 2009, 49 people have been arrested attempting to gain employment, or working specifically at the Olympic park and athletes' village sites, 40 of these were never actually employed at the sites.
	Prior to April 2009, no data exclusively for arrests on the Olympic park site are available. Arrest figures collected between April 2008 and March 2009 are for projects in Stratford and the surrounding area, and include the Olympic park and Olympic village. Only an aggregate figure is available for this period and a total of 138 foreign nationals seeking to gain employment or working at these locations (including the Stratford City Westfield development) were arrested on suspicion of working in the UK without permission or presenting false documentation during this time.
	These figures do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on internal management information. The information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols and should be treated as provisional and subject to change.
	The responsibility for ensuring employees have the right to work in the UK rests with the employer. Since April 2008, UKBA staff have been working with the Olympic Delivery Authority and contractors to support the site security process of checking that people employed on the Olympic park and athletes village hold genuine identity documents and are legally entitled to work in the UK.
	Three employers have been issued with Notices of Potential Liability for employing illegal workers and failing to carry out the appropriate checks to confirm that their employees are entitled to work in the UK. Two have been fined, one was found not to be liable.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Departmental Mobile Phones

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many  (a) mobile telephones and  (b) BlackBerrys were provided to (i) Ministers and (ii) special advisers in his Department since March 2009; and at what cost to the public purse.

Si�n Simon: The information is as follows:
	My Department has:
	 (a) Mobile phones-three for our Ministers only.
	 (b) BlackBerry devices.
	(i) Three for the Ministers
	(ii) Two for special advisers
	The total cost is £2361.02

Departmental Written Questions

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what average time his Department took to answer questions for  (a) ordinary written answer and  (b) written answer on a named day in the last 12 months.

Si�n Simon: Information on the average time taken to answer parliamentary questions is not readily available in the format requested and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Radio: Scotland

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment has been made of the effects on rural communities in Scotland of ending FM/AM broadcasting in 2015.

Si�n Simon: There are no plans to end FM broadcasting in 2015.

Theatre: Young People

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many tickets have been taken up under the A Night Less Ordinary scheme.

Margaret Hodge: Between February 2009 and November 2009, 121,742 tickets were taken up by young people under the 'A Night Less Ordinary' scheme.
	Results from 1 December 2009 to 28 February 2010 will be made available in April.

DEFENCE

Armed Forces: Housing

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many and what percentage of overseas  (a) single living accommodation and  (b) service family accommodation units are in each grade in each country.

Kevan Jones: Single living accommodation (SLA) is graded by its scale (this consists of a number of factors including size and amount of storage) as well as physical condition. The best available data indicate that as at October 2009, the following number and percentage of overseas SLA bed-spaces were at the each grade:
	
		
			   Grade 1  Grade 2  Grade 3  Grade 4 
			  Country  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			 Germany 2,146 16 1,137 8 3,553 26 6,773 50 
			 Cyprus 60 3 - - 247 14 1,460 83 
			 Gibraltar - - 249 81 - - 60 19 
			 South Atlantic Islands 2 - - - - - 2,374 100 
			 Rest of world 70 8 13 1 60 7 736 84 
			 UK (as at December 2008)(1) 34,933 25 19,498 14 22,101 16 60,745 45 
			 (1) The UK SLA figures, included for comparison purposes, are for the number of bed-spaces at each 'condition grade' rather than 'Grade for Charge'. 
		
	
	Service family accommodation (SFA) is assessed for standard for condition (SfC), a measure of the physical condition of a property. The best available data indicate that as at October 2009, the following number and percentage of overseas SFA properties were at each SfC:
	
		
			   S1fC  S2fC  S3fC  S4fC 
			  Country  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			 Germany 3,766 33 2,948 26 3,590 31 1,146 10 
			 Cyprus 224 10 410 19 50 2 1,503 69 
			 Gibraltar 163 37 24 5 70 16 184 42 
			 South Atlantic Islands 15 16 22 23 49 50 11 11 
			 Rest of world 222 19 526 46 393 34 4 1 
			 UK (as at December 2009) 12,718 38 19,689 59 1,034 3 204 Less than 1

Departmental Drinking Water

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has spent on bottled drinking water in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Quentin Davies: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my noble Friend, the Minister for International Defence and Security, Baroness Taylor of Bolton, to the noble Lady, Baroness Warsi of Dewsbury, in another place on 19 May 2009,  Official Report, House of Lords, column WA294.

NATO

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has made to the right hon. Member for Ashfield on NATO's  (a) nuclear policy and  (b) New Strategic Concept Group; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: My right hon. Friend the Member for Ashfield (Mr. Hoon) has been appointed to the Group of Experts advising on NATO's new Strategic Concept by Secretary-General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, in an independent capacity. Mr. Hoon is able to draw on support from the Ministry of Defence and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on the full range of issues associated with this work.

Trident Submarines

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his most recent assessment is of the likely effects on life extension of Vanguard-class submarines, should continuous at-sea deterrence cease.

Quentin Davies: The Government remain committed to the policy of Continuous At-Sea Deterrence, as set out in the 2006 White Paper The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent (Cm 6994). The 2006 White Paper indicated that it might be possible to extend the life of the current submarines by five years and these studies are ongoing, based on the operating posture of Continuous At-Sea Deterrence.

Warships: Portsmouth

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his review of the use of naval bases will include issues other than the relocation of Type 23 Frigates to Portsmouth; when the outcomes of the review will be published; and if he will make a statement.

Quentin Davies: As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence announced on 6 May 2009,  Official Report, column 16WS, as part of work to consider the optimal base-porting arrangements for the less complex variants of the Future Surface Combatant (FSC), the Department would examine whether there is any case to change the base-porting of the Type 23 frigates. Under the Maritime Change Programme, key stakeholders, including representatives from Portsmouth and Plymouth city councils as well as naval base staff, are supporting Warwick university in developing a shared socio-economic model, which will help to greater understand the implications of any potential future change to warship base-porting arrangements at Portsmouth and Devonport.
	The contiguous impact of three principal scenarios is to be initially investigated: the move of Trafalgar Class submarines from HM Naval Base Devonport to HM Naval Base Clyde; the decommissioning of Type 22 Frigates and any potential change to the current Type 23 base-porting arrangements. We aim to have this model ready in spring 2010 to help inform debate and decision making. The impact of any proposed base-porting changes across the Defence Lines of Development, including accommodation, support, personnel and infrastructure, will be also assessed during the decision making process.
	Currently, no date has been agreed by when an announcement on any potential Type 23 base-porting arrangements will be made. As part of any future announcement, we will be able to confirm that there will be no base porting changes for around five years as we are committed to providing sufficient notice for Royal Navy personnel and their families and the wider community to plan for the future.

Warships: Shipbuilding

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the  (a) Astute and  (b) Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability programmes; and if he will make a statement.

Quentin Davies: holding answer 25 January 2010
	The Major Projects Report 2009 reported delays to the Astute Class Programme which will lead to cost growth and reduction in planned submarine availability. Of the seven planned Astute Class submarines the first four boats have been ordered. Boat 1 (Astute) is currently undergoing an extensive programme of Sea Trials while Boats 2 to 4 (Ambush, Artful and Audacious) are in various stages of construction. Orders for long lead items for Boat 5 and the reactor core for Boat 6 have also been placed.
	Following the delays, work to re-baseline the Astute Programme is ongoing and the final impact on both the overall programme and individual boat build profile can only be confirmed once detailed joint planning and cost analysis work has been completed and MOD investment and HM Treasury re-approval has been obtained.
	A competition for the Tanker element of the MARS Programme was originally started in late 2007. The competition was cancelled in March 2009 and subsequent work to review the procurement strategy concluded that a more open approach, considering a range of possible solutions, is more likely to secure best value for money. A new international competition for the Tanker element of MARS is therefore under way and Pre-Qualification Questionnaires from a number of companies/consortia are currently being evaluated. This work is nearing completion and, once internal MOD approval to proceed to the next stage of the competition has been granted, invitations to submit outline proposals will be issued. This is expected to be during spring 2010. On current plans the contract is due to be awarded in 2012.
	The later classes of MARS ships, Fleet Solid Support and Amphibious Combat Support, remain uncommitted at this stage.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Leader of the House what the cost was of maintaining her Office's website for the 2008-09 financial year; and what the forecast cost is of maintaining websites within her responsibility in the 2009-10 financial year.

Barbara Keeley: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps) on 25 January 2010,  Official Report, column 534W.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Algeria: Overseas Aid

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid his Department allocated to Algeria in  (a) 2005,  (b) 2006,  (c) 2007,  (d) 2008 and  (e) 2009.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) does not have a bilateral programme in Algeria and has not allocated any aid to the country between 2005 and 2009.
	Details of DFID's aid expenditure in developing countries are published annually in Statistics on International Development, which is available in the House Library or online at:
	www.dfid.gov.uk

Departmental Disclosure of Information

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which non-departmental public bodies for which his Department is responsible sell information on a commercial basis to  (a) companies or individuals in the private sector and  (b) other organisations.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) is responsible for one non-departmental public body, the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission (CSC). The CSC does not sell any information on a commercial basis to companies, individuals or other organisations.

Departmental Manpower

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many layers of management reporting from the most senior to the most junior there are in his Department; how many officials are employed in each such layer; and how much was spent on salaries and associated employment costs of staff at each such layer in the latest year for which information is available.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) has a senior civil service (SCS) structure consisting of four separate management grades. Below the SCS there are a further eight grades. The following table shows the total number of staff at each grade and their associated employment costs for the 2008-09 financial year.
	
		
			  DFID grade  Traditional civil service grade  Number of staff( 1)  Employment cost( 2)  (£000) 
			  SCS
			 Permanent Secretary Permanent Secretary 1 (3)n/a 
			 Director General Director General 4 (3)n/a 
			 Director Director 15 1,955 
			 Deputy Director Deputy Director 79 8,543 
			 
			  Below the SCS
			 A1 G6 280 19,771 
			 A2 G7 472 25,054 
			 A2(L) G7 (Lower) 133 5,853 
			 B1(D) HEO(D)-Fast Stream 51 1,773 
			 B1 HEO 268 10,009 
			 B2 EO 226 6,268 
			 C1(4) AO 161 3,554 
			 C2(4) AA 25 509 
			 (1) Staff numbers are on a headcount basis and include all DFID home civil service staff. (2 )Employment cost consists of base salaries, overtime, performance related pay and includes the employer's share of NI and pension contributions. (3) Cost withheld on confidentiality grounds as numbers in the grade are fewer than five. (4) Staff in these grades do not have line management responsibilities.

Developing Countries: Educational Visits

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding for school children to visit developing countries his Department allocated to pupils who attended National Challenge schools in  (a) 2008-09 and  (b) 2009-10; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Foster: The following table shows how much funding for school children to visit developing countries the Department for International Development (DFID) provided to National Challenge schools in 2008-09 and 2009-10.
	
		
			  DFID funding for children to visit developing countries who attend National Challenge schools ( a pproximate figures) 
			   £ 
			 2008-09 5,370 
			 2009-10 3,900 
		
	
	In 2009-10, fewer National Challenge schools applied for Global Curriculum Project grants compared to 2008-9. There were no unsuccessful applications from National Challenge schools in either 2008-09 or 2009-10.
	This funding was provided through the Global School Partnerships programme implemented by the British Council.

Haiti: Overseas Aid

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid the Government have provided to Haiti in each year since 1997; for what purposes; and with which non-governmental organisations his Department has worked in Haiti over this period.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development's (DFID's) aid expenditure is published annually in Statistics on International Development, which is available in the House Library and at:
	www.dfid.gov.uk
	The relevant figures for Haiti are reproduced in the following table.
	
		
			  £ 
			  UK Financial year  Total UK bilateral aid  Total UK imputed multilateral aid 
			 1997-98 124,788 2,201,626 
			 1998-99 59,225 2,015,828 
			 1999-2000 16,209 7,837,425 
			 2000-01 60,562 681,563 
			 2001-02 130,395 3,787,737 
			 2002-03 125,165 29,929,110 
			 2003-04 129,747 5,065,698 
			 2004-05 2,027,103 7,139,048 
			 2005-06 1,282,616 19,790,351 
			 2006-07 446,153 7,859,963 
			 2007-08 0 14,377,519 
			 2008-09 823,599 (1)- 
			 2009-10 (2)735,000 (1)- 
			 (1) Not yet available. (2) These figures are provisional and only include spend up to 12 January 2010. 
		
	
	In addition to these annual figures the UK has pledged £20 million in emergency assistance since the earthquake of 12 January 2010.
	The majority of the UK's support to Haiti has been through multilateral channels, such as the United Nations (UN) agencies, the European Commission (EC) and World Bank. DFID does not have a regular bilateral programme for medium and long term development in Haiti. However bilateral aid has been provided for humanitarian purposes and debt relief.
	Since 1997 DFID has supported work in Haiti by the following non-governmental organisations: Fonkoze, Oxfam, Handicap International, Action against Hunger, ActionAid, Catholic Aid for Overseas Development (CAFOD), CARE International, Christian Aid, Ethical Training Initiative, HelpAge International, International HIV/AIDS Alliance, Panos, Progressio and Transparency International.

Haiti: Overseas Aid

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much emergency aid has been provided to Haiti by the EU since the recent earthquake; and what discussions he has had at EU level on provision of aid.

Michael Foster: On 18 January I attended a meeting of EU Ministers responsible for development and humanitarian aid in Brussels to discuss the support that the EU would provide to Haiti in the short, medium and long term. At the meeting, the European Commission pledged €30 million for emergency assistance, along with €100 million for early rehabilitation. It was also indicated that some €200 million more will be available for longer term reconstruction. These contributions are in addition to the €92 million pledged by individual EU countries at the same meeting.
	Since the earthquake struck on 12 January, the Secretary of State for International Development has been in regular contact with the European Union High Representative Cathy Ashton, together with other European Ministers.

Morocco: Overseas Aid

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid his Department allocated to Morocco in  (a) 2005,  (b) 2006,  (c) 2007,  (d) 2008 and  (e) 2009.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) does not have a bilateral programme in Morocco. In 2005-06 DFID spent £1 million on humanitarian assistance. No other bilateral aid has been allocated to Morocco between 2005 and 2009.
	Details of DFID's aid expenditure in developing countries are published in Statistics on International Development, which is available in the Library or online at:
	www.dfid.gov.uk

Overseas Aid

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations he has received on the policy of results-based aid; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: I refer the hon. Member to the oral answer provided on 20 January 2010,  Official Report, column 287-8, on results-based aid.

Sudan: Elections

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding his Department has made available to the government of  (a) Sudan and  (b) Southern Sudan to assist preparations for the forthcoming (i) elections and (ii) referendum.

Gareth Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) does not provide any funds directly to the Government of Sudan or the Government of Southern Sudan.
	However, we have supported preparations for the election since 2007 through alternative means. DFID has spent £2.95 million providing training to the media and domestic observation groups as well as technical assistance on civic education and conflict management. We have also contributed £1.5 million to the Elections Basket Fund, managed by UN Development programme (UNDP). This fund provides support to all aspects of the electoral process, and continues the focus on civic and voter education and conflict prevention. On 6 January 2010, the UK announced a further £8.05 million contribution to the Elections Basket Fund, bringing our total contribution to support elections in Sudan to £12.5 million.
	The UK is looking into kind of what assistance we can provide to support the referendum due to take place in 2010. We continue to discuss the nature and co-ordination of this support with the parties in Sudan and all our international partners.

West Africa: Overseas Aid

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will increase aid to Morocco, Tunisia and Libya to help these states tackle illegal immigration from Western Africa to Europe.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) aims to provide 90 per cent. of funding to low income countries. Given the middle income status of the majority of North African countries they are not the focus for our bilateral aid programmes.
	The UK works closely with EU member states and third country partners to tackle illegal immigration into the EU. Illegal immigration is an important issue for the UK and the EU and we continue to work with third country partners on a range of operational activities and agreements, both bilaterally and with our EU partners.
	This work takes various forms such as the Assisted Voluntary Return scheme in Libya implemented by the International Organisation for Migration.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Caribbean: EU External Trade

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent progress has been made on individual Caribbean countries signing Economic Partnership Agreements with the EU; and what recent representations he has received on the fairness of such agreements.

Chris Bryant: The Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the CARIFORUM States and the European Community (EC) and its member states was signed by 13 CARIFORUM states on 15 October 2008: Antigua and Barbuda, The Commonwealth of the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, The Commonwealth of Dominica, The Dominican Republic, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, The Republic of Suriname, and the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The Republic of Guyana signed on 20 October 2008 and most recently The Republic of Haiti signed on 11 December 2009. With the signature of Haiti, all 15 Caribbean states who chose to negotiate the EPA with the EC have now signed. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not received any recent representations on the fairness of this agreement.

Departmental Carbon Emissions

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether  (a) his Department and  (b) each of its agencies have plans to sign up to the 10:10 campaign to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 10 per cent. in 2010.

Chris Bryant: Yes, on 8 February 2010, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary plans to sign up the UK operations of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and our Trading Fund, FCO Services, to the 10:10 campaign and will urge our network of overseas posts to follow suit.

Departmental Disclosure of Information

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether  (a) agencies and  (b) non-departmental public bodies for which his Department is responsible sell information on a commercial basis to (i) companies or individuals in the private sector and (ii) other organisations.

Chris Bryant: Government Departments and agencies and non-departmental public bodies that have Crown status make most of their information available for free re-use under the Public Sector Information Click-Use Licence. Government trading funds, such as Foreign and Commonwealth Office Services, for which I have ministerial responsibility, are able under their trading fund status to charge for the services they provide in order to cover their costs. This covers information and its supply provided to other public bodies, commercial organisations and individuals. In common with other Government policy initiatives, some Foreign and Commonwealth Office information is published and sold as priced publications.

Departmental Mobile Phones

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many  (a) mobile telephones and  (b) BlackBerrys were provided to (i) Ministers and (ii) special advisers in his Department in 2009; and at what cost to the public purse.

Chris Bryant: At the start of 2009 a total of nine BlackBerries and one car phone were in operation. Ministers had a total of six BlackBerries and one car phone assigned between them. Special advisers were allocated a total of three BlackBerries
	After the reshuffle in June the total was reduced to four BlackBerries, one mobile phone and one car phone. Ministers had two BlackBerries, one mobile phone and one car phone in use between them. Special advisers were allocated a total of two BlackBerries.
	Our billing cycle runs quarterly from 1 December to 30 November. Provision and usage of mobile phones for Ministers and special advisors over the 12-month period 1 December 2008 to 30 November 2009 has cost £7,263.56. This is broken down as follows:
	Provision and usage of mobile phones for Ministers: £6,246.53
	Provision and usage of mobile phones for special advisers: £1,017.03.
	December 2009 expenditure will appear on our February statement.

Diplomatic Service

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with reference to the evidence of the Permanent Under-Secretary to the Foreign Affairs Select Committee on 9 December 2009, HC 145-i, question 10, at which overseas posts local staff have  (a) lost overtime payments,  (b) been asked to take involuntary unpaid leave and  (c) been asked to work four-day weeks.

David Miliband: Decisions about overtime, unpaid leave and working patterns for locally engaged staff are devolved to delegated budget holders and individual posts. Comprehensive information on these decisions are not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he plans to reply to the letter of 9 December 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. S Choudhry.

David Miliband: I replied to the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 22 January 2010.

Snow and Ice

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the costs to his Department arising from the severe weather conditions in the period 4 January to 18 January 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Bryant: This information is not held centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Western Sahara

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what remedy exists under international law to remove settlements in the occupied Western Sahara which are deemed to be illegal.

Ivan Lewis: The Government see the status of the disputed territory of Western Sahara as undetermined and continue to believe that progress towards a negotiated solution to the dispute, providing for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara, is best achieved under the auspices of the UN. Therefore, any issues relating to residence and property rights will need to be considered in this context.

Western Sahara: Human Rights

Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Western Sahara; and what steps he is taking to assist in improvements to the human rights situation in that territory.

Ivan Lewis: Officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London and our embassy in Rabat visited Layounne in December 2009 to assess the situation. A similar visit was also carried out in March 2009 to the refugee camps in Tindouf (Algeria) by an official from our embassy in Algiers. We will continue our programme of visits and our embassy in Rabat is developing links with Moroccan and Sahrawi non-governmental organisations who work on the dispute.
	The Government believe that greater openness and transparency on human rights by all the parties to the dispute would create a significantly better environment for political dialogue through the auspices of the UN. We support the call by the UN Secretary-General, in his latest report, for the parties to remain engaged in a continuous and constructive dialogue with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and to make progress on the human dimension of the conflict.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Antisocial Behaviour

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the answer of 27 October 2009,  Official Report, column 284W, on antisocial behaviour, what the names are of the expert practitioners on the action squad.

Alan Johnson: The antisocial behaviour squad is a group of established practitioners working with our ASB local delivery managers to ensure that antisocial behaviour is effectively tackled. It is made up of 66 skilled practitioners, drawn from a broad range of expertise and specialisms including the police, councils and housing organisations, with national coverage which can be called upon at short notice to help local areas deliver the package of measures I announced on 13 October 2009.

Antisocial Behaviour

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the answer of 27 October 2009,  Official Report, column 283W, on antisocial behaviour orders, how many antisocial behaviour orders were breached following the imposition of a parenting order in the latest period for which figures are available.

Alan Johnson: Data collected centrally by my Department on breaches of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) cover the period to the end of 2007 (latest currently available). ASBO breach data compiled by my Department do not include details of whether defendants proven in court to have breached their ASBO were subject to either an individual support order or a parenting order. This information could only be ascertained by examination of individual court files, which could be achieved only at disproportionate cost.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether an automated authority to carry capability will be specified in his Department's contract with Trusted Borders for services relating to the e-borders programme.

Phil Woolas: The automated authority to carry capability did not form part of the core services in the e-Borders contract signed on 14 November 2007. However, it was included as an agreed option within the contract, as a potential future service.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent progress has been made on the implementation of the e-Borders programme; whether the programme met its project milestones in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The project milestone for processing 100 million annualised passenger movements per year has been met by the e-Borders Programme.
	The programme has not yet achieved the milestone for processing 60 per cent. of all passenger journeys into and out of the UK.
	Currently, e-Borders is checking between 45 and 50 per cent.(1) of all passenger movements.
	(1) This figure is subject to verification by statisticians.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the level of compliance by airlines with the data requirements of the e-Borders programme; and when he expects all airlines to implement that programme.

Phil Woolas: Currently 111 carriers are providing data to the e-Borders system, covering approximately 2,454 routes.
	It is expected that all commercial airlines will be compliant by the end of December 2010, in line with the Prime Minister's statement of 20 January.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his Department expects to meet its target of capturing 100 million passenger movements through passenger name record checks; and how many such movements have been captured to date.

Phil Woolas: We have met our target to capture the travel document information (TDI) for 100 million passenger movements.
	To date, through the e-Borders system and its pilot project Semaphore, TDI data have been processed on over 147 million passengers travelling to and from the UK, at an annualised rate of over 100 million passenger movements per year.
	e-Borders expects to capture 100 million passenger name record (PNR) movements into and out of the UK by 2013.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent progress has been made on the inclusion of the category of other passenger information in the e-Borders programme.

Phil Woolas: Other passenger information (OPI) is known within the aviation industry as passenger name record (PNR).
	OPI collection will be rolled out on a phased approach, with particular focus on higher risk routes first. The e-Borders/Semaphore system is already collecting OPI data on a voluntary basis and includes 121 carriers on 76 routes.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent estimate he has made of the cost of implementing the authority to carry element of the e-Borders programme.

Phil Woolas: Following a limited trial last year and the Prime Minister's recent statement on security and border protection, we are examining the options for preventing people travelling to the United Kingdom. No recent estimate has been made of the cost of implementing an authority to carry scheme through the e-Borders Programme.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has plans to increase the number of security checks on  (a) outbound and  (b) transit passenger movements carried out by the UK Border Agency.

Phil Woolas: UK Border Agency officers carry out a range of intelligence-led checks on outbound and transit passengers. More than 50 per cent. of the data analysed by our e-Borders system relate to people who are leaving British ports. This will increase as e-Borders continues to roll out.
	Following the Prime Minister's recent statement on security and border protection, we are examining the options for strengthening our checks further.

British Nationality

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what regulations govern the re-admission to the UK of a UK national who has taken US citizenship but whose citizenship has been revoked upon deportation from the United States.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 25 January 2010
	All passengers, including deportees, who claim to be British nationals, must be able to demonstrate this on arrival in the UK. This is normally achieved by presentation of a valid travel document, confirming their nationality and identity. The requirement is irrespective of any other nationality currently or previously held by the passenger.
	British nationals are not subject to immigration control; however, all arriving passengers are checked against the Watchlist. In certain circumstances, their arrival in the UK may be referred to other law enforcement agencies, for further action.

Community Safety Accreditation Schemes

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in each area have been approved by the Community Safety Accreditation Scheme since it was introduced.

Alan Johnson: Community Safety Accreditation Schemes allow Chief Officers to designate limited powers to employees of organisations which contribute towards community safety and tackling antisocial behaviour (ASB) such as park wardens, train operators and private security guards. These powers enhance the contribution of people in roles that are already concerned with keeping communities safe; and mean that there are more people on the streets with powers to tackle and not tolerate ASB.
	The Home Office does not hold the information requested centrally. In order to provide an answer, all police forces that have operated a scheme would have to be asked to provide figures and this could be done only at disproportionate cost. The Home Office does conduct an annual audit of persons accredited by each police force. This is a snapshot of accredited persons at one time and does not represent all people accredited over time. Figures for accredited persons in the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency are collected separately as theirs is a specialist role with a single power granted to stop vehicles for testing. The last published figures, for 2008, are set out in the following table. The 2009 CSAS audit was published on the Home Office website on 15 December 2009 and can be accessed at:
	http://police.homeoffice.gov.uk/community-policing/citizen-focused-policing/community-safety-accredit-scheme/index29f9.html?version=9
	
		
			  spring 2008 
			  Force  a rea  Accredited persons (non-VOSA )  VOSA accredited persons 
			 Avon and Somerset 11 6 
			 Bedfordshire 0 8 
			 British Transport Police 129 0 
			 Cambridgeshire 0 2 
			 Cheshire 17 24 
			 City of London 0 0 
			 Cleveland 82 0 
			 Cumbria 0 4 
			 Derbyshire 0 6 
			 Devon and Cornwall 5 0 
			 Dorset 0 0 
			 Durham 65 6 
			 Dyfed and Powys 0 0 
			 Essex 291 10 
			 Gloucestershire 0 5 
			 Greater Manchester 0 5 
			 Gwent 75 5 
			 Hampshire 111 6 
			 Hertfordshire 117 7 
			 Humberside 0 0 
			 Kent 138 14 
			 Lancashire 51 8 
			 Leicestershire 8 7 
			 Lincolnshire 0 3 
			 Merseyside 0 6 
			 Metropolitan Police 0 0 
			 Norfolk 0 8 
			 Northamptonshire 57 7 
			 North Wales 0 8 
			 North Yorkshire 0 0 
			 Northumbria 0 3 
			 Nottinghamshire 120 5 
			 South Wales 0 4 
			 South Yorkshire 7 8 
			 Staffordshire 0 11 
			 Suffolk 0 4 
			 Surrey 40 3 
			 Sussex 12 13 
			 Thames Valley 0 24 
			 Warwickshire 28 0 
			 West Mercia 32 17 
			 West Midlands 10 0 
			 West Yorkshire 0 8 
			 Wiltshire 0 0

Counter-terrorism

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many journalists have been arrested under counter-terrorism legislation for taking photographs since 2000; and whether any such journalists have been prosecuted.

David Hanson: The Home Office collates statistics showing the number of individuals convicted of offences related to terrorism. These were included in a bulletin published on 13 May 2009 (Statistics on Terrorism Arrests and Outcomes Great Britain 11 September 2001 to 31 March 2008), and subsequently on 26 November 2009 (Operation of police powers under the Terrorism Act 2000 and subsequent legislation: Arrests, outcomes and stops and searches Great Britain 2008-09).
	These statistics, however, do not include details on the number of journalists that have been arrested and prosecuted for taking photographs under Counter Terrorism legislation since 2000. The Home Office does not hold these statistics.

Crime

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Twickenham of 16 October 2009,  Official Report, column 1175W, on crime, what the equivalent figures are for each year from 1998-99 to 2001-02.

Alan Johnson: The available information is given in the table. The offence groups used are those in place at the time the data were published. The offence of indecent exposure was included in the 'Other' offences rather than, as now, in the sexual offences group . There have also been changes with respect to two other rarer offences (bigamy and concealing an infant death close to birth). Figures are given for the old offence group of 'Theft and handling stolen goods' which is now split into 'Offences against vehicles' and 'Other theft'.
	In addition, the National Crime Recording Standard was introduced in April 2002. Because of this and the differences referred to above, the data given in the table are not directly comparable with those provided in the answer on 16 October 2009.
	Detection rates are a ratio of crime detected in a period to crimes recorded in a period. They are not based on tracking whether individual crimes recorded in a period have eventually been detected.
	
		
			  Percentage of offences resulting in a specific method of detection by offence group( 1) 
			   Percentage of offences recorded resulting in: 
			  Offence group and financial year  Charge or summons  Caution  Penalty notice for disorder  Offence taken into consideration 
			  Violence against the person 
			 1998-99 38 10 n/a 0 
			 1999-2000(1) 36 9 n/a 0 
			 2000-01(1) 35 9 n/a 0 
			 2001-02(1) 33 8 n/a 0 
			  
			  Sexual offences 
			 1998-99 45 5 n/a 0 
			 1999-2000(1) 39 5 n/a 0 
			 2000-01(1) 36 4 n/a 0 
			 2001-02(1) 35 4 n/a 0 
			  
			  Robbery 
			 1998-99 17 1 n/a 1 
			 1999-2000 14 1 n/a 1 
			 2000-01 14 1 n/a 1 
			 2001-02 14 0 n/a 1 
			  
			  Burglary 
			 1998-99 7 1 n/a 4 
			 1999-2000(1) 7 1 n/a 4 
			 2000-01(1) 7 1 n/a 4 
			 2001-02(1) 7 0 n/a 4 
			  
			  Theft and handling stolen goods 
			 1998-99 11 4 n/a 2 
			 1999-2000(1) 11 3 n/a 2 
			 2000-01(1) 11 3 n/a 2 
			 2001-02(1) 10 3 n/a 2 
			  
			  Fraud and forgery 
			 1998-99 18 3 n/a 11 
			 1999-2000(1) 15 3 n/a 8 
			 2000-01(1) 15 3 n/a 8 
			 2001-02(1) 15 2 n/a 8 
			  
			  Criminal damage 
			 1998-99 8 3 n/a 1 
			 1999-2000(1) 8 3 n/a 0 
			 2000-01(1) 7 3 n/a 0 
			 2001-02(1) 7 3 n/a 0 
			  
			  Drug offences 
			 1998-99 50 41 n/a 0 
			 1999-2000(1) 52 39 n/a 0 
			 2000-01(1) 54 35 n/a 0 
			 2001-02(1) 52 34 n/a 0 
			  
			  Other offences 
			 1998-99 62 7 n/a 1 
			 1999-2000(1) 60 7 n/a 1 
			 2000-01(1) 58 7 n/a 0 
			 2001-02(1) 69 11 n/a 2 
			  
			  Total 
			 1998-99 15 5 n/a 3 
			 1999-2000(1) 14 4 n/a 2 
			 2000-01(1) 14 4 n/a 2 
			 2001-02(1) 14 4 n/a 2 
			 n-a = not available. Penalty notices for disorder were only introduced in August 2002. (1) Estimated based on returns from 42 police forces.

Departmental Internet

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which websites his Department's staff are blocked from accessing from networked computers in his Department.

Phil Woolas: The Security Policy Framework, the Data Handling Report and the National Information Assurance Strategy produced by the Cabinet Office provide a strategic framework for protecting information that Government handles and put in place a set of mandatory measures to which Departments must adhere.
	It is not in the interest of the security of the Department, or that of the public, to disclose detailed information relating to security of departmental IT systems. Disclosing such information would carry a significant risk of enabling criminals and those who would attempt to cause disruptive threats to the department to deduce how to conduct attacks and therefore potentially enhance their capability to carry out such attacks.

Departmental Internet

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent on  (a) strategy and planning,  (b) design and build,  (c) hosting and infrastructure,  (d) content provision and  (e) testing and evaluation for his Department's websites in each of the last three years; and how much has been allocated for each such category of expenditure in 2009-10.

Phil Woolas: The information is as follows:
	 (a) Strategy and planning costs are embedded in other costs and cannot be extracted from other running costs for the years required.
	 (b) Design and build costs as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2006-07 (1)- 
			 2007-08 56,000 
			 2008-09 36,000 
			 2009-10 Nil 
			 (1 )Not available as a separate figure. 
		
	
	 (c) The costs of hosting, licensing, domain registration, and updates.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2006-07 750,100 
			 2007-08 620,000 
			 2008-09 577,000 
			 2009-10 583,000 
		
	
	 (d) Content provision is partly incorporated in the costs given for hosting etc and partly with other costs. It is not possible to extract these costs.
	 (e) Testing and evaluation costs:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2006-07 n/a 
			 2007-08 90,000 
			 2008-09 23,000 
			 2009-10 (1)179,003 
			 (1) This includes allocations for user research and information architecture development, resulting from the movement of content to Direct.gov

Departmental Pay

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what  (a) bonuses and  (b) incentives have been paid to (i) consultants and (ii) contractors engaged by his Department in each of the last three years.

Phil Woolas: The Home Department does not have any direct employer-employee relationships with individual consultants or contractors.
	The Department engages consultants and contractors through suppliers on consultancy and contractor assignments. We do not, therefore, pay the salaries, nor any incentives or bonuses for these individuals.

Deportation

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many deportations of residents of the London borough of Bexley without leave to remain there have been in each of the last three years.

Phil Woolas: Information of the number of individuals who were resident in the London borough of Bexley who have been removed in each of the last three years could be obtained only by undertaking a search of case files which would incur disproportionate cost.
	Published statistics on immigration and asylum are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html

Drugs: Cannabis

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) simple cautions for cannabis possession and  (b) cannabis warnings have been issued by each police force in each year since 2004.

Alan Johnson: The number of cautions and cannabis warnings recorded by the police in England and Wales as a method of detection for possession of cannabis offences are given in Tables 1 and 2 respectively.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of cautions recorded as method of detection for possession of cannabis offences, by police force area in England and Wales, 2004-05 to 2008-09 
			  Police force area  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Avon and Somerset 345 504 563 616 616 
			 Bedfordshire 35 45 55 162 215 
			 British Transport Police 775 1,009 975 752 737 
			 Cambridgeshire 192 269 243 267 273 
			 Cheshire 353 389 148 240 188 
			 Cleveland 248 294 308 263 336 
			 Cumbria 216 194 184 212 168 
			 Derbyshire 131 259 162 247 265 
			 Devon and Cornwall 468 630 404 466 442 
			 Dorset 259 260 249 218 199 
			 Durham 116 149 141 139 154 
			 Dyfed-Powys 467 438 406 337 286 
			 Essex 367 443 498 696 814 
			 Gloucestershire 181 213 180 220 312 
			 Greater Manchester 1,013 1,341 1,067 1,285 1,213 
			 Gwent 437 316 347 324 324 
			 Hampshire 824 550 405 617 556 
			 Hertfordshire 253 302 281 434 567 
			 Humberside 314 389 272 252 222 
			 Kent 443 524 454 637 557 
			 Lancashire 651 782 701 832 780 
			 Leicestershire 479 512 320 276 276 
			 Lincolnshire 184 135 133 133 141 
			 London, City of 78 133 147 142 81 
			 Merseyside 1,786 1,003 529 1,125 1,451 
			 Metropolitan Police 17,841 5,071 4,929 4,458 4,643 
			 Norfolk 241 200 276 255 223 
			 Northamptonshire 384 384 390 329 205 
			 Northumbria(1) 1,045 1,019 592 398 346 
			 North Wales 351 324 219 333 357 
			 North Yorkshire 29 23 36 124 124 
			 Nottinghamshire 279 604 535 631 542 
			 South Wales 433 376 275 340 405 
			 South Yorkshire 395 452 582 630 610 
			 Staffordshire 445 493 507 473 342 
			 Suffolk 245 857 216 221 252 
			 Surrey 468 440 371 424 395 
			 Sussex 559 884 865 1,076 672 
			 Thames Valley 1,191 1,618 1,303 1,401 1,444 
			 Warwickshire 122 220 292 297 269 
			 West Mercia 466 481 443 401 423 
			 West Midlands 1,343 1,797 1,784 1,964 2,165 
			 West Yorkshire 1,064 1,036 723 621 556 
			 Wiltshire 222 191 147 120 200 
			 England and Wales 37,738 27,553 23,657 25,388 25,346 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of cannabis warnings recorded as method of detection for possession of cannabis offences, by police force area in England and Wales, 2004-05 to 2008-09 
			  Police force area  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09( 1) 
			 Avon and Somerset 977 2,578 3,600 2,554 2,598 
			 Bedfordshire 603 643 324 289 347 
			 British Transport Police 659 203 430 1,707 3,214 
			 Cambridgeshire 349 492 956 1,594 1,257 
			 Cheshire 311 393 532 757 1,109 
			 Cleveland 120 192 331 686 851 
			 Cumbria 272 244 231 218 272 
			 Derbyshire 665 513 497 520 600 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1,956 1,532 1,473 1,380 1,571 
			 Dorset 369 340 348 393 349  
			 Durham 252 207 257 256 333 
			 Dyfed-Powys 917 799 887 882 794 
			 Essex 556 697 722 1,348 1,597 
			 Gloucestershire 371 395 419 459 529 
			 Greater Manchester 1,751 3,235 4,943 5,311 5,136 
			 Gwent 159 396 646 757 998 
			 Hampshire 698 1,113 1,477 2,260 1,943 
			 Hertfordshire 258 488 1,394 1,485 1,897 
			 Humberside 32 149 533 895 991 
			 Kent 198 497 652 846 1,276 
			 Lancashire 390 237 210 528 791 
			 Leicestershire 154 978 1,555 1,967 1,701 
			 Lincolnshire 79 473 543 508 491 
			 London City of 505 682 373 436 506 
			 Merseyside 961 8,561 7,204 7,229 8,114 
			 Metropolitan Police 13,160 21,040 30,554 46,979 47,204 
			 Norfolk 486 638 731 786 751 
			 Northamptonshire 120 111 206 311 439 
			 Northumbria(2) n/a n/a 761 916 1,459 
			 North Wales 543 799 971 985 1,059 
			 North Yorkshire 727 655 554 701 665 
			 Nottinghamshire 529 855 1,077 1,210 950 
			 South Wales 520 536 1,266 2,414 2,220 
			 South Yorkshire 560 1,023 1,027 1,296 1,627 
			 Staffordshire 867 1,323 1,282 1,150 1,153 
			 Suffolk 600 64 573 599 744 
			 Surrey 523 482 754 993 811 
			 Sussex 866 1,350 1,971 2,447 1,369 
			 Thames Valley 2,232 1,883 2,431 2,753 2,518 
			 Warwickshire 340 418 650 399 342 
			 West Mercia 572 582 686 756 872 
			 West Midlands 2,025 3,451 2,852 2,286 2,229 
			 West Yorkshire 1,212 1,839 1,539 1,340 1,245 
			 Wiltshire 274 394 231 218 329 
			 England and Wales 39,718 63,480 80,653 103,804 107,251 
			 n/a= Not available 1. Since 26 January 2009, Penalty Notices for Disorder (PNDs) can be given for cannabis possession. Up to the end of March 2009 such PNDs were counted together with cannabis warnings. 2 Northumbria Police have advised that their IT Data Capture System was unable to separately identify cannabis warnings during 2004-05 and 2005-06 and that for these two years their cautions data have been inflated by what are now counted as cannabis warnings.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for how many referrals of potential victims of trafficking to the National Referral Mechanism  (a) a positive conclusive grounds decision has been made,  (b) a negative conclusive grounds decision has been made,  (c) a decision is pending and  (d) no decision has been made.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 18 January 2010
	Between 1 April 2009 and 31 December 2009 there have been 527 referrals made to competent authorities within the National Referral Mechanism. The breakdown of decisions are as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			 Did not proceed to conclusive grounds (negative at reasonable grounds) 131 
			 Negative conclusive grounds decision 47 
			 Positive conclusive grounds decision 85 
			 Suspended 19 
			 No decision recorded 245 
			 Total 527 
			  Notes: 1. 'Suspended' cases are where the individual has either absconded or is missing prior to a decision being made. 2. 'No decision recorded' means the decision has not been officially logged with UK Human Trafficking Centre (UKHTC). This is where the reasonable grounds decision is either still being considered or where the decision has yet to be recorded on the UKHTC system.

Immigration Controls

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions immigration judges have overturned a decision on an application made under each tier of the points-based immigration system since the implementation of that system.

Phil Woolas: There is no right of appeal to an immigration judge for applications refused out of country.
	The information for in country appeals is as follows:
	
		
			  Number of appeals allowed under each tier of PBS: 29 February 2008 - 31 December 2009( 1) 
			   2008  2009 
			  Tier  Q1  Q2  Q3  Q4  Q1  Q2  Q3 
			 1 (2)- 5 45 305 1125 1985 1480 
			 2 n/a n/a n/a - (2)- 45 100 
			 3 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 4 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a (2)- 130 
			 5 n/a n/a n/a - - (2)- (2)- 
			 n/a = Not applicable as tier had not been introduced. (1 )For in-country applications only. Outside the UK a refusal of entry clearance under PBS does not attract a full right of appeal. (2 )1 or 2.  Notes: 1. All figures rounded to nearest 5. 2. All figures quoted are provisional and derived from internal management information. The information has not been quality assured through National Statistics protocols

Islam4UK: Wootton Bassett

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received in respect of proposals by Islam4UK to march in Wootton Bassett.

David Hanson: holding answer 11 January 2010
	The Government received a number of public and parliamentary representations about proposals from Islam4UK to march in Wootton Bassett. The Government condemn any group that promotes hatred and discord and the Home Secretary issued a statement on 4 January that he would support the operational judgment of the police in consenting to a ban if Wiltshire police and the local authority received an application to march from Islam4UK and, under the provisions of the Public Order Act 1986, sought a banning order.
	The Home Secretary laid an order on 11 January which came into force on 14 January and which provides that Islam4UK and a number of other names should be treated as alternative names for an organisation which is already proscribed as Al Ghurabaa and The Saved Sect.

Islam4UK: Wootton Bassett

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will refuse permission to Islam4UK to hold a demonstration in the town of Wootton Bassett if that group requests permission.

David Hanson: holding answer 11 January 2010
	The Home Secretary issued a statement on 4 January that he would support the operational judgment of the police in consenting to a ban if Wiltshire police and the local authority received an application to march from Islam4UK and, under the provisions of the Public Order Act 1986, sought a banning order.
	The Home Secretary laid an Order on 11 January which came into force on 14 January and which provides that Islam4UK and a number of other names should be treated as alternative names for an organisation which is already proscribed as Al Ghurabaa and The Saved Sect. While the proposed march in Wootton Bassett was of no relevance to the consideration which led to this Order, one of the consequences of proscription is to criminalise any meeting organised by, in support of, or addressed by a member of Islam4UK.

Passports: Fees and Charges

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much the visa section of the British embassy in Berne received in overseas passport fees in respect of passports issued in Switzerland in each of the last five years.

Chris Bryant: I have been asked to reply.
	Our records show that our embassy in Berne received the following fees for passports over the last five years:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2004-05 2,400 
			 2005-06 2,800 
			 2006-07 1,800 
			 2007-08 2,600 
			 2008-09 2,600 
			 Total 12,200

Passports: Forgery

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many forged passports have been seized each year since 1997.

Phil Woolas: The following table details the detections of false passports encountered by the Immigration and Nationality Directorate of the Home Office (before 31 March 2007), the Border and Immigration Agency (between 1 April 2007 and 31 March 2008) and the UK Border Agency (since 1 April 2008).
	
		
			  Number 
			 1997 4,411 
			 1998 6,338 
			 1999 5,516 
			 2000 5,394 
			 2001 7,320 
			 2002 10,125 
			 2003 9,546 
			 2004 10,620 
			 2005 7,712 
			 2006 7,354 
			 2007 6,939 
			 2008 5,960 
		
	
	Figures for 2009 are not yet available. Figures from 1997 to 2000 inclusive represent detections at the border only. Those from 2001 to 2008 inclusive detail detections at the border and those made in country by caseworking offices and enforcement officers. They do not include the numbers of inadequately documented passengers denied boarding by commercial carriers overseas working in conjunction with UK Immigration Liaison Officers and Managers (formerly Airline Liaison Officers) from the Risk and Liaison Overseas Network. Some of these passengers will have held false documents but precise figures for the numbers denied boarding for this reason are unavailable.

Police

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the proportion of police  (a) time and  (b) budget spent on tackling (i) acquisitive, (ii) sex work-related and (iii) drug-related crime.

David Hanson: The table contains information on the percentages of police time and budget spent on dealing with acquisitive crimes, drugs offences, and non-crime incidents related to prostitution in 2007-08. It should be noted that prostitution is not in itself a crime.
	Some incidences of other crime types (such as violence against the person) may be related to either sex work or drugs; time spent on these is not recorded separately, so it is not possible to give an estimate of time and budget spent upon them.
	
		
			  Table A: Time spent on dealing with acquisitive crimes, drugs offences, and non-crime incidents related to prostitution in 2007-08( 1) 
			   (a) percentage of time spent on dealing with( 2) :  (b) percentage of budget spent on( 3) : 
			 (i) Acquisitive crimes(4) 10.5 11.8 
			 (ii) Prostitution-related incidents 0.1 0.1 
			 (iii) Drugs offences 2.5 3.1 
			 (1) Crime prevention activity is excluded from these figures, as it is not possible to break this activity down by the crime prevented. (2) Figures in column (a) exclude data from Staffordshire, which are not available. (3) Figures in column (b) exclude data from Essex, Staffordshire, Suffolk and Thames Valley, which are not available. (4) Acquisitive crime includes burglary from a dwelling, burglary from commercial or other premises, robbery, theft of or from a motor vehicle, and other theft.

Police Patrolling

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what his policy is on single patrols; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether he has made a recent assessment of the level of risk to the safety of police officers of undertaking single patrols; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: In the Home Office's recent policing White Paper, Protecting the Public: Supporting the Police to Succeed, we reiterate our support for police forces to develop patrolling strategies which maximise visibility and public engagement, and which increase efficient and effective deployment.
	The advantages of single patrols go well beyond increased cost-effectiveness. Research has demonstrated the effectiveness of single patrols at engaging communities, particularly at the level of neighbourhood foot patrol.
	Greater community engagement and increased visibility are both crucial to increasing public confidence in the police. Figures released from the British Crime Survey on 21 January 2010 showed a 4 per cent. year-on-year increase in public confidence in the police and partners working together to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour (in the 12 months to September 2009).
	The decision to employ single patrols is an operational policing issue, made by the police force in question.

Police: Manpower

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers in each police authority area are deployed  (a) to Iraq,  (b) to Afghanistan and  (c) elsewhere outside the UK; and how many are serving in specialist units outside their force area.

David Hanson: holding answer 25 January 2010
	 There are currently eight serving and one retired UK civilian police officers deployed to Iraq. Of the serving officers two are from the Metropolitan Police Service, two from Hertfordshire and one from each of the following areas: Cheshire, Norfolk, Northumbria and South Wales.
	There are currently 21 serving and eight retired UK civilian police officers deployed to Afghanistan. Of the serving officers 15 are from the Ministry of Defence police, one from the Police Service of Northern Ireland and one from each of the following areas: City of London, Leicestershire, Sussex, Kent and Northumbria.
	There are currently 13 serving and two retired UK civilian police officers deployed to other countries on Peace Support Operations (mainly Kosovo and Georgia). Of the serving officers seven are from the Ministry of Defence police, two from the Metropolitan Police Service and one from each of the following areas: Hertfordshire, Surrey, Cheshire and South Wales.
	In addition to the above longer-term deployments, which are typically for six to 12 months, shorter term police assistance overseas is provided on a frequent basis. In 2009, the Home Office issued 943 authorisations under section 26 of the Police Act 1996 to police officers and staff from forces in England and Wales in respect of travel overseas to provide assistance to an international organisation or other body engaged outside the UK in policing activities. The majority of these authorisations were in respect of short-term assistance on a wide range of policing matters to numerous countries.
	The Home Office does not collect information on the number of officers serving in specialist units in the UK outside their force area.

Shellfish: Testing

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many animals were used in the safety testing of shellfish in 2008; which shellfish were being tested; and for which poisons the animals were tested.

Meg Hillier: EU Directive 91/492/EEC, and Commission Decision 2002/225/EC, specify the shellfish types, toxin classes, and test methods used.
	However, with respect to the animal numbers used, the information requested is not available, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics (implementing the Statistics and Registration Act 2007) and the National Statistician's guidance 'Confidentiality of Official Statistics'. Providing the information requested would breach statistical confidentiality relating to individual establishments and individual licensees.

Terrorism

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in the Metropolitan Police Authority area detained on suspicion of terrorist or related offences were released because there was not enough evidence to charge them within 28 days in the last two years.

David Hanson: holding answer 26 January 2010
	The Home Office does not hold statistics which will answer this question. Investigations into terrorism suspects in the Metropolitan Police Authority area are the responsibility of the Metropolitan Police Service and security services. Responsibility for prosecution of terrorism suspects lies with the Crown Prosecution Service.

Terrorism

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the date of arrest was of each individual who has been held in pre-charge detention without charge under counter-terrorism legislation for more than 14 days.

David Hanson: holding answer 26 January 2010
	To date, three individuals have been held in pre-charge detention under counter-terrorism legislation for more than 14 days and subsequently released without charge. Their date(s) of arrest were as follows:
	1. 9 August 2006
	2. 10 August 2006
	3. 10 August 2006.
	All three were released on 6 September 2006.

Terrorism

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many people have been detained without charge on suspicion of terrorist or related offences for over  (a) 14 days and  (b) 28 days in the last 10 years;
	(2)  what the date was of the most recent arrest under counter-terrorism legislation following which a suspect was held in pre-charge detention for over  (a) 14 days and  (b) 28 days.

David Hanson: holding answer 26 January 2010
	The Home Office does not hold statistics which are recorded in this way. However, the Home Office does collate statistics on the number of terrorism arrests and convictions and these are included in a Bulletin published for the first time on 13 May 2009 (Statistics on Terrorism Arrests and Outcomes Great Britain 11 September 2001 to 31 March 2008). The first edition of the Bulletin is available at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs09/hosb0409.pdf
	The second issue of the Bulletin was published on 26 November 2009 and is available via the link below:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs09/hosb1809.pdf

Terrorism: Prosecutions

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many potential prosecutions of terrorist suspects have been unable to proceed because of the expiry of the 28-day limit on detaining suspects without charge since the entry into force of that limit.

David Hanson: holding answer 26 January 2010
	The Home Office does not hold statistics which will answer this question. Investigations into, and prosecutions of, terrorism suspects are the responsibility of the police and security services and the Crown Prosecution Service.

Vetting

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance his Department issues to police forces on the types of information to be disclosed in soft data disclosures under enhanced Criminal Records Bureau checks.

Meg Hillier: holding answer 25 January 2010
	Section 113 B (4) of Part V of the Police Act 1997 requires that in addition to criminal record information from the Police National Computer (PNC), enhanced certificates should include any other information which a chief police officer considers might be relevant to the job application in question.
	This is usually non-conviction information deriving from local force records and is referred to as 'approved information'; chief officers are obliged to provide such information for Enhanced certificates under the Act. Where disclosed, information of this nature is considered by the police to represent a factual record of previous events that an employer in the most sensitive type of occupation should be aware of in making an employment decision affecting the most vulnerable groups of people.
	Factors that would be taken into consideration when making decisions to disclose would include, but not be restricted to, the position the individual is currently applying for, the age of the information, whether the information might be directly relevant to the assessment of the person's suitability to work with children and whether it is reasonable to disclose the information, bearing in mind the human rights of the individuals concerned.
	In making such assessments, the chief officers follow guidelines including, Home Office circular 5/2005, Criminal Records Bureau: Local Checks by Police Forces for the Purpose of Enhanced checks, and this has been augmented by a process known as the Quality Assurance Framework. The circular makes clear that consideration has been given to a person's right to privacy under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. In this regard there is a section in the circular which details what factors should be considered in determining relevancy.
	The Quality Assurance Framework (QAF) is a standardised approach to processing local intelligence information held by Police Force Disclosure Units and was developed by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) and the CRB. QAF provides a step-by-step process framework that ensures that information is considered consistently and in the same way every time. Searches performed on local systems using the QAF Framework and document set produce an audit trail that can be used for quality assurance and to assure QAF compliance.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Affordable Housing

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the Trusts Services Authority issues guidance to local authorities on obtaining information on the sexual orientation of social tenants and leaseholders.

Ian Austin: The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007 make it unlawful for public authorities (which includes local housing authorities) to discriminate on the grounds of sexual orientation in the provision of goods, facilities and services, the disposal and management of premises and the exercise of public functions (among other things).
	New statutory guidance for local authorities in England, published on 4 December 2009, advises that monitoring and evaluation systems should be put in place and lettings outcomes published so that people can see that the allocation scheme is being complied with and is fair, and that the authority is meeting its duties under the equalities legislation.

Local Government: Empty Property

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many empty properties local authorities have taken into ownership in the last three years.

Ian Austin: Information on the number of empty properties that local authorities have taken into ownership is not held centrally. Since 1 February 2007, 27 Empty Dwelling Management Orders have been issued. EDMOs do not result in a change of ownership but pass the management of the properties to the local authority in order that they can be brought back into use.

Repossession Orders

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homes in  (a) Chesterfield constituency,  (b) Derbyshire and  (c) England have been repossessed in each year since 1979.

Ian Austin: There are two independent sources of data on actual numbers of mortgage possessions: the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) and the Financial Services Authority (FSA). However both are only available for the United Kingdom as a whole.

Social Rented Housing

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will take steps to encourage home-based working in  (a) local authority and  (b) housing association social housing tenancies.

Ian Austin: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman) on 21 October 2009,  Official Report, column 1511W, and the answer given to him on 21 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 484-85W.

Social Rented Housing: Unemployed

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of social housing  (a) tenants and  (b) households of working age are not in employment, education or training.

Ian Austin: Estimates of the proportion of social tenants not in employment, education or training are provided in the following table. These estimates are based on data from the 2008 ONS Labour Force Survey.
	
		
			  Economic status of social tenants, England, 2008 
			  All social tenants 
			   economic status of tenant  
			   In employment, education or training  Not in employment, education or training  Total (percentage) 
			 All social tenants 35 65 100 
			 Social tenants of working age 50 50 100 
			 Social tenants with at least one household member of working age 48 52 100 
			  Notes: 1 Excludes households where economic status unknown. 2 Working age is defined as 16 to 59 for females and 16 to 64 for males.  Source: ONS Labour Force Survey

Sustainable Development

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he will publish the new guidance on sustainability and spatial strategy; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Austin: The policy statement on Regional Strategy along with the proposed new guidance on sustainability appraisal was published for consultation between 6 August and 30 October 2009. We are actively considering the 153 responses received and look to publish the final policy statement and guidance in mid February.

TREASURY

Banks: Finance

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason his Department's due diligence information on  (a) banks in which the Government has a shareholding or which the Government owns and  (b) RBS assets guaranteed by the Government have not been made available to UK Financial Investments.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: UK Financial Investments Limited (UKFI) has been set up to manage the Government's investments in financial institutions at arm's length and on a commercial basis.
	UKFI's objective is to dispose of the investments in an orderly and active manner, within the context of an overarching objective of protecting and creating value for the taxpayer, paying due regard to financial stability and promoting competition.
	For the purpose of analysing detailed due diligence information to deliver the APS, the Treasury considered that advice from Treasury's legal and financial advisers was deemed sufficient and that it was not necessary or appropriate to consult UKFI on this information. Sharing such information with UKFI could have led them becoming insiders and could thus compromise their ability to manage or dispose of the shareholdings.

Banks: Iceland

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what meetings  (a) he and  (b) his officials have had with the Icelandic Government regarding the repayment of debt to the Government for the compensation of depositors who held accounts with Icesave.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings and discussions with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings and discussions.

Banks: Pay

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether  (a) his Department and  (b) UK Financial Investments advised (i) RBS and (ii) Lloyds Banking Group on the categories of employees to be (A) included in and (B) excluded from bonus pools.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Government's shareholdings in the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Lloyds Banking Group are managed on a commercial and arm's length basis by UK Financial Investments Ltd (UKFI). UKFI's objective is to protect and create value for the taxpayer as shareholder, with due regard to the maintenance of financial stability, and to act in a way that promotes competition.
	UKFI have agreed deferral and clawback terms for 2009 bonuses for both banks, which have signed up to the FSA code and G20 agreements. No decisions have yet been taken on the quantum of bonus payments.

Departmental Correspondence

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of his reply to the letter of 1 November 2009 sent to Lord Myners by Tim Bush.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: No correspondence from Mr Bush has been located in the Treasury. I am grateful to the hon. Member for the copy his office have now provided, and a reply will be prepared as soon as possible.

Departmental Food

James Paice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the quantity of food waste generated by his Department in each year for which figures are available.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: HM Treasury is committed to making operations as sustainable as possible. Detailed information on waste and recycling in Treasury buildings is published in HM Treasury's Annual Report and Accounts 2008-09 (HC 611).
	Figures for food waste for the past three years for its buildings are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  (Tonnes) 
			   1 Horse Guards Road  Rosebery Court 
			 2006-07 5 0 
			 2007-08 5 0 
			 2008-09 21 0 
		
	
	The catering contractor for 1 Horse Guards Road introduced a food waste recycling programme in March 2008 under which food waste is removed from the building and is transported to a biogas plant where it is subjected to an anaerobic digestion process. In addition, the process produces fertilizer and electricity as by-products.
	Previously, volumes of food waste had been calculated using the industry standard of food produced but not used and was measured on the basis that each bag of food waste weighed around 3kg on average. When the food waste recycling programme was introduced in March 2008 for 1 HGR, the system changed from counting bags to physically weighing the waste before removing them from the site, and this explains the vastly increased figure from what was reported in earlier years.
	The Rosebery Court office does not have on-site catering facilities.

Financial Services: EU Action

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the likely effects of proposed EU regulations on derivatives on businesses in the corporate sector which depend on very long-term hedging practices to manage risk and uncertainty; and if he will make a statement.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: In December, HM Treasury and FSA published a paper called 'Reforming OTC Derivative Markets, A UK Perspective', available at:
	www.fsa.gov.uk/pubs/other/reform_otc_derivatives.pdf
	This paper sets out the UK's preliminary thinking on future regulation, both globally and in the EU, on derivatives issues, including the implications for corporates.

Government Departments: ICT

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance his Department has issued to other Government departments on budget control for Government ICT projects.

Liam Byrne: OGC's best practice sets a framework for public sector project management which includes cost and budget management through the project lifecycle. in addition, OGC's project assurance tools, eg the OGC Gateway(tm) process, give visibility of cost control aspects of projects and recommendations are made as appropriate.
	In addition, a major strand of the supply management initiative which was launched in 2006 is performance improvement via a two-way common assessment framework designed to address shortfalls in delivery and to deliver cash savings. Every six months, on a commercially confidential basis, departments review supplier performance on key ICT projects: one of the areas for review being 'delivery to cost parameters'.

National Insurance Contributions: Local Government

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much and what proportion of the revenue from national insurance contributions for employers is attributable to local government employers.

Stephen Timms: The revenue from national insurance contributions for local Government employers was £4.7 billion in the 2007-08 tax year; equivalent to 8.3 per cent. of the total revenue from national insurance contributions for employers.

Revenue and Customs

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the objectives are of the HM Revenue and Customs Policy Development Programme.

Stephen Timms: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not have a Policy Development Programme.
	HMRC's Policy Delivery Programme is a portfolio of projects which implement and deliver policy measures and legislation, including EU legislation, for the Department.

Streatham

Keith Hill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will set out, with statistical evidence relating as closely as possible to Streatham constituency, the effects on that constituency of changes to his Department's policies since 1997.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Neighbourhood Statistics Service provides a wide range of statistical information at parliamentary constituency level, taken from the 2001 census and other sources. This service is available on the National Statistics website at
	http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk./
	The Government have put in place a broad programme of reform since 1997. Over the decade to 2007, the economic performance of all parts of the UK has improved considerably.
	The global recession has had a negative impact on economic activity in all areas of the UK. However, the economy was starting from a position of strength and is actively supported by policies implemented by the Government, including the fiscal stimulus and a significant package of support for those out of work. In Streatham people are benefiting from this investment. Over the second half of 2009, more than 900 people moved off of the claimant count each month on average. The claimant count fell for two consecutive months in November and December and now stands 2 per cent. below its October level. At the end of 2009, claimant count unemployment is still 30 per cent. lower and long-term unemployment 85 per cent. lower than in May 1997.

Taxation: Self-Assessment

William Cash: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the sum to accrue to the Exchequer from penalty charges and interest surcharges on unpaid tax from self-assessment tax returns for the 2008-09 tax year.

Stephen Timms: No such estimate has been made.

WOMEN AND EQUALITY

Departmental Pay

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many  (a) year-end and  (b) in-year bonuses were paid to officials in the Government Equalities Office in each of the last three years; and how much was paid in such bonuses in each such year.

Michael Jabez Foster: Since its creation on 12 October 2007 the Government Equalities Office has awarded the following staff bonuses.
	
		
			  Financial year  Number of bonuses  Total of bonuses (£) 
			 2007-08 25 37,787 
			 2008-09 19 28,400 
			 2009-10 67 58,850 
		
	
	The Government Equalities does not differentiate between in-year and year-end bonuses.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Attendance Allowance

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will publish the modelling her Department has  (a) undertaken and  (b) commissioned in relation to its consideration of the merits of (i) ending and (ii) changing the (A) attendance allowance and (B) disability living allowance scheme in the last five years.

Jonathan R Shaw: We are developing our care and support proposals, based on the Green Paper Shaping the Future of Care Together.
	The impact assessment was published with the Green Paper and is available on the Big Care Debate website at:
	http://careandsupport.direct.gov.uk/greenpaper/the-green-paper-and-supporting-documents/
	A copy of the impact assessment has been placed in the Library.

Cold Weather Payments

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in each local authority area have received benefits through the Cold Weather Payment Scheme since 1 November 2009.

Helen Goodman: The information is not available.

Cold Weather Payments

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been spent on the Cold Weather Payment scheme since 1 November 2009.

Helen Goodman: The total expenditure authorised for cold weather payments in Great Britain since 1 November 2009 up to Tuesday 12 January 2010 is estimated to be £261 million.

Cold Weather Payments

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the number of pensioners who are eligible to receive cold weather payments in 2009-10.

Helen Goodman: holding answer 26 January 2010
	The number of pensioner benefit units in Great Britain who are eligible to receive cold weather payments in 2009-10 if the temperature criterion is met is estimated to be 2.6 million.
	A benefit unit can be either a single person or a couple. A benefit unit receives only one cold weather payment for a given week. The number of individual pensioners who are potentially helped by cold weather payments is about 3.3 million, taking account of couple households.

Departmental Information Officers

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much press officers in her Department and its agencies claimed in reimbursable expenses in 2008-09.

Jim Knight: The Department for Work and Pensions operates a single press office to support the work of the Department as well as agencies such as Jobcentre Plus and the Pensions, Disability and Carers' Service.
	Press officers claimed £17,800.94 in reimbursable expenses in 2008-09.

Departmental Pay

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been paid in bonuses to civil servants in her Department in each year since 2003.

Jim Knight: The Department operates two pay-related employee reward schemes. They comprise end of year non-consolidated performance pay and in-year special awards.
	 End of year non-consolidated performance pay
	DWP employees below the senior civil service are eligible for an annual individual non-consolidated performance payment if they attain a top, higher or majority rating under the annual performance and development system. The actual payment awarded is determined by the employee's pay band and the performance level achieved.
	For the senior civil service, end of year non-consolidated performance pay is determined by the relevant departmental pay committee, in line with recommendations by the independent Senior Salaries Review Body.
	The total payments made in respect the years since 2003 are as follows:
	
		
			  Financial year  Total paid (£ million)  Work force 
			 2002-03 30.82 140,380 
			 2003-04 25.29 139,999 
			 2004-05 36.61 141,476 
			 2005-06 42.82 130,623 
			 2006-07 40.68 125,712 
			 2007-08 36.61 118,909 
			 2008-09 23.32 114,225 
			 2009-10 21.81 112,227 
		
	
	The average payments in the years between 2002-03 and 2009-10 were between £199.48 and £350.39.
	 Special awards
	Individuals may be awarded a special award either as cash or in the form of retail vouchers. These are one-off recognition awards, payable at any time during the performance year to recognise exceptional achievements beyond what would normally be expected.
	Figures for retail vouchers are available from 2007 when they were introduced to the Department. Figures for cash payments are not available prior to 2007-08.
	The total amount paid in awards was as follows:
	
		
			  Cash payments 
			  Financial year  Total paid (£ million)  Average for those receiving a payment (£) 
			 2007-08 2.70 240 
			 2008-09 3.04 208 
			 2009-10 (April to August 2009) 0.91 179 
		
	
	
		
			  Voucher payments 
			  Financial year  Total cost (£ million)  Value 
			 2007-08 1.77 Between £25 and £50 
			 2008-09 2.02 Between £25 and £50 
			 2009-10 (April to August 2009) 0.95 Between £25 and £50 
		
	
	In addition to individual performance bonus payments, DWP also paid team bonuses to selected units within the Department between the period 2002 and 2005. The total payments made were as follows.
	
		
			  Financial year  Total paid (£ million)  Average for those receiving a payment (£) 
			 2002-03 7.8 557.14 
			 2003-04 29.4 735.00 
			 2004-05 3.3 293.33

Departmental Pay

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been allocated for  (a) year-end and  (b) in-year bonuses for (i) her Department's and (ii) its agencies' staff in 2009-10.

Jim Knight: The Department operates two pay-related employee reward schemes. They comprise end of year non-consolidated performance pay and in-year special awards.
	 End of Year Non-consolidated Performance Pay
	DWP employees below the Senior Civil Service are eligible for an annual individual non-consolidated performance payment if they attain a top, higher or majority rating under the annual performance and development system. The actual payment awarded is determined by the employee's pay band and the performance level achieved.
	For the Senior Civil Service, end of year non-consolidated performance pay is determined by the relevant Departmental Pay Committee, in line with recommendations by the independent Senior Salaries Review Body.
	Performance awards are payable in July and are attributable to performance in the previous financial year. In the 2009-10 financial year £21.81 million was paid in July 2009 for performance in the previous year. Of this £4.66 million was paid to employees in DWP Corporate and Shared Services, £13.98 million to those in Jobcentre Plus, and £3.17 million to those in the Pension, Disability and Carers Service. The average payment received was £199.48.
	 Special Awards
	Individuals may be awarded a special award either as cash or in the form of retail vouchers. These are one-off recognition awards, payable at any time during the performance year, to recognise exceptional achievements beyond what would normally be expected.
	Up to 0.25 per cent of the overall departmental staff budget is available to fund Special Awards and in 2009-10 this equates to £7.28 million of which £5.97 million is available to the Department's agencies and £1.31 million to the rest of the Department.
	For the period April to August 2009, the number of Special Awards made was 22,997, at a cost of £1.86 million. Departmental headcount at August 2009 was 118,356.
	The average payment received was £80.88.

Departmental Trade Unions

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what office facilities her Department provides for the exclusive use of each trade union recognised by it; and what the notional value of such provision was in the latest period for which information is available.

Jonathan R Shaw: I refer the right hon. Member to the written answer I gave to his question on 29 April 2009,  Official Report, column 125W.
	The information provided within the answer is still the current position. We are unable to provide a notional value of the facilities used because the information is not available.

Disability Living Allowance: West Yorkshire

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in the West Yorkshire area were claiming disability living allowance in each of the last five years.

Jonathan R Shaw: The available information is in the table.
	
		
			  Disability living allowance-cases in payment for the Government office region of Yorkshire and the Humber by parliamentary constituency 
			  May  each year 
			  Yorkshire and the Humber  2005  2006  2007  2008  2009 
			 Barnsley Central 6,430 6,590 6,730 6,840 7,080 
			 Barnsley East and Mexborough 8,450 8,490 8,590 8,670 8,880 
			 Barnsley West and Penistone 5,260 5,340 5,440 5,540 5,770 
			 Batley and Spen 4,410 4,530 4,640 4,690 4,820 
			 Beverley and Holderness 4,400 4,520 4,660 4,840 4,940 
			 Bradford North 5,510 5,560 5,680 5,820 5,940 
			 Bradford South 5,600 5,790 5,920 6,030 6,190 
			 Bradford West 6,390 6,450 6,570 6,700 6,980 
			 Brigg and Goole 3,680 3,770 3,850 4,020 4,100 
			 Calder Valley 3,860 3,980 4,090 4,210 4,400 
			 City of York 3,330 3,430 3,540 3,600 3,720 
			 Cleethorpes 4,070 4,180 4,290 4,400 4,580 
			 Colne Valley 4,250 4,340 4,480 4,640 4,770 
			 Dewsbury 4,880 5,030 5,150 5,280 5,440 
			 Doncaster Central 5,400 5,470 5,580 5,730 5,910 
			 Doncaster North 6,050 6,120 6,280 6,360 6,570 
			 Don Valley 5,810 5,890 6,040 6,190 6,280 
			 East Yorkshire 5,220 5,300 5,440 5,560 5,670 
			 Elmet 3,770 3,800 3,940 4,040 4,160 
			 Great Grimsby 4,390 4,500 4,610 4,770 4,990 
			 Halifax 4,850 5,000 5,050 5,140 5,290 
			 Haltemprice and Howden 2,500 2,560 2,670 2,780 2,850 
			 Harrogate and Knaresborough 2,800 2,840 2,880 2,960 3,050 
			 Hemsworth 7,960 8,070 8,190 8,260 8,400 
			 Huddersfield 5,380 5,490 5,610 5,740 5,910 
			 Keighley 3,680 3,770 3,870 3,970 4,130 
			 Kingston upon Hull East 5,530 5,660 5,830 5,900 5,990 
			 Kingston upon Hull North 5,470 5,540 5,650 5,730 5,880 
			 Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle 5,120 5,220 5,360 5,410 5,700 
			 Leeds Central 5,900 5,960 6,050 6,160 6,330 
			 Leeds East 4,690 4,760 4,820 4,830 4,980 
			 Leeds North East 3,630 3,660 3,740 3,790 3,910 
			 Leeds North West 2,720 2,750 2,820 2,920 3,000 
			 Leeds West 4,200 4,340 4,450 4,580 4,790 
			 Morley and Rothwell 4,750 4,820 4,950 5,120 5,330 
			 Normanton 4,270 4,360 4,470 4,570 4,710 
			 Pontefract and Castleford 6,420 6,520 6,600 6,700 6,910 
			 Pudsey 3,050 3,140 3,290 3,350 3,490 
			 Richmond Yorks 2,760 2,860 2,980 3,120 3,180 
			 Rother Valley 5,840 5,930 6,050 6,190 6,390 
			 Rotherham 6,040 6,150 6,320 6,460 6,580 
			 Ryedale 3,050 3,110 3,220 3,290 3,370 
			 Scarborough and Whitby 5,210 5,360 5,560 5,680 5,880 
			 Scunthorpe 4,370 4,500 4,620 4,740 4,800 
			 Selby 2,900 2,960 3,090 3,240 3,380 
			 Sheffield Attercliffe 5,480 5,490 5,600 5,680 5,930 
			 Sheffield Brightside 6,230 6,380 6,550 6,630 6,860 
			 Sheffield Central 5,710 5,760 5,870 5,980 6,190 
			 Sheffield Hallam 1,750 1,800 1,840 1,890 1,930 
			 Sheffield Heeley 5,000 5,130 5,250 5,410 5,550 
			 Sheffield Hillsborough 4,690 4,770 4,880 5,020 5,160 
			 Shipley 3,540 3,620 3,690 3,770 3,860 
			 Skipton and Ripon 2,840 2,900 3,000 3,110 3,200 
			 Vale of York 2,500 2,540 2,630 2,720 2,850 
			 Wakefield 5,260 5,380 5,530 5,580 5,750 
			 Wentworth 6,530 6,640 6,790 6,820 6,980 
			 Total 263,790 268,840 275,310 281,170 289,690 
			  Notes: 1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10, totals may not sum due to rounding. 2. Totals show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital.  Source: DWP Information Directorate; Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study

Employment and Support Allowance

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether benefits are paid to a claimant appealing against a decision not to be moved from the work category to the support employment allowance category.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 25 January 2010
	Employment and support allowance continues to be paid to customers who are in the work related activity group pending the outcome of an appeal against a decision not to award the support component of the benefit.
	Employment and support allowance can also be paid pending the outcome of an appeal where a decision has been made that the customer does not have limited capability for work following a work capability assessment.

Employment and Support Allowance

Hazel Blears: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of employment and support allowance claimants scored enough points to be considered unable to work in 2009.

Jonathan R Shaw: If an employment and support allowance claimant completes assessment they are placed in one of three groups:
	Support group (for those with severe disabilities)-they receive a higher rate of benefit entitlement overall and exemption from mandatory involvement with Pathways to Work.
	Work related activity group-they receive higher rate of benefit than those on jobseeker's allowance and are mandated to engage with Pathways to Work.
	Fit for work-the employment and support allowance claim should cease although individuals can ask for a reconsideration or appeal if they disagree with the decision.
	People in the support group are not assessed on the basis of points scored but on the basis of the nature and severity of their condition. Most people in the work related activity group claim employment and support allowance on the basis of scoring enough points against an assessment of their functional capability.
	The latest data on the assessment of employment and support allowance claimants was published on 19 January 2010 and can be found:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/workingage/esa_wca/esa_wca_arc.asp
	This shows that 12 per cent. of employment and support allowance claims are placed in the work related activity group (or 23 per cent. of those claims which complete assessment). Note that 9 per cent. of people in the work related activity group are placed there on the basis of their condition (e.g. uncontrollable diseases) or their work capability assessment is deferred (e.g. hospital in-patients) rather than points scored.

Employment and Support Allowance: Mentally Ill

Hazel Blears: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of applicants for employment and support allowance with mental health problems were classified as  (a) unfit to work and  (b) fully fit to work in 2009.

Jonathan R Shaw: The information requested is not available.

Future Jobs Fund

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of jobs created under the Future Jobs Fund scheme have been taken up by 18 to 24 year-olds; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: Information on Future Jobs Fund starts is not currently available but will be made available from spring 2010 through a statistical release that is planned to cover the whole of the Young Persons Guarantee. This is normal practice for DWP employment programmes and it allows time for input from the UK Statistics Authority and for the information to be collected, understood, verified and reported.

Future Jobs Fund

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Future Jobs Fund jobs have been taken up by those leaving jobseeker's allowance; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: holding answer 25 January 2010
	 Information on Future Jobs Fund starts is not currently available but will be made available from spring 2010 through a statistical release that is planned to cover the whole of the Young Persons Guarantee. This is normal practice for DWP employment programmes and it allows time for input from the UK Statistics Authority and for the information to be collected, understood, verified and reported.

Hotels

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many hotel room nights were booked by officials in  (a) her Department and  (b) its agencies in each year since 2007; and how much (i) her Department and (ii) its agencies spent on the fees of third party agents in booking hotel accommodation in each of those years.

Jim Knight: All official travel within the Department is carried out in accordance with the requirements of both the Civil Service Management Code:
	http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/documents/doc/CSMC_April_08.doc
	and Departmental Business Travel Policy, which enable staff to stay overnight in hotel accommodation when travelling on detached duty for business purpose.
	The following room nights were booked by DWP staff in the Department in each full financial year since 2007-08.
	
		
			   Room nights 
			  2007-08  
			 Total DWP 139,365 
			 Disability and Carers Service 3,399 
			 Corporate Services/Headquarters 40,628 
			 Child Support Agency 27,073 
			 The Pension Service 24,218 
			 Jobcentre Plus 44,047 
			   
			  2008-09  
			 Total DWP 143,923 
			 Disability and Carers Service n/a 
			 Corporate Services/Headquarters 49,458 
			 Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission 25,379 
			 Pension, Disability and Carers Service 21,979 
			 Jobcentre Plus 47,107 
		
	
	The Pension Service and the Disability and Carers Service merged into a single Agency in April 2008. The figures in the table need to be seen in the context of the Department's total staffing of over 100,000. The Department's booking agent is remunerated on a commission share basis by the hotels with whom it books accommodation and the Department itself pays no booking fees.

Jobcentre Plus: Telephone Services

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the answer of 20 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 848-9W, on Jobcentre Plus: telephone services, what progress has been made in her Department's discussions with the Telephone Helplines Association and mobile telephone companies; what assessment she has made of the merits of automated textback helplines; for what reasons her Department does not instruct its operators to offer callbacks; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: I am very pleased to be able to report that the Department for Work and Pensions has now signed an agreement with six of the largest mobile operators to provide free calls from mobiles to our 0800 claims lines.
	The agreement will be phased in during January and, by the end of January, all customers who use Vodafone; T-Mobile; 02; Orange; Virgin Mobile and Tesco Mobile to call our 0800 claims lines will no longer be charged by their service provider. We expect the remaining 24 or so mobile operators to join the agreement meaning that by April 2010 all calls from mobiles to our 0800 claims lines should be free to the caller.
	With this agreement we have achieved a significant step towards making a reality of our policy of free calls to our 0800 claims lines for all our customers.
	The Department is currently exploring the use of SMS text messaging as a means of communicating with customers. As part of that work we will consider whether text messaging is a suitable way of customers requesting a call-back. In the meantime, where a customer calling either our 0800 or 0845 services asks us, or raises concerns over the cost of the call, we will offer to call them back.

Maternity and Paternity Pay

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether she has made an estimate of her Department's expenditure on statutory  (a) maternity and  (b) paternity pay for people from each income quintile in each year since 1997.

Helen Goodman: holding answer 26 January 2010
	No.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  when she expects to reply to the letter dated 23 November 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. P. McCarty;
	(2)  when she plans to reply to the letter dated 23 November 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Mr. P McCarty.

Jim Knight: A reply was sent to my right hon. Friend on 15 January 2010.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  when she expects to reply to the letter dated 30 November 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. S. Winter;
	(2)  when she plans to reply to the letter dated 30 November 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Mrs Alice Winter.

Jim Knight: A reply was sent to my right hon. Friend on 15 January 2010.

Offenders

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employees of her Department and its agencies have been convicted of a criminal offence of each type in each year since 1997.

Jim Knight: Information on the number of employees of the Department and its agencies who have been convicted of criminal offences and the type of offence in each year since 1997 is set out in the following table. The data is provided to the Department by the Home Office and is not available prior to 2006.
	
		
			   Number of convictions by year ( 1 January to 31 December) 
			  Agency  2006  2007  2008  2009 
			 Jobcentre Plus 5 1 10 26 
			 Corporate Centre 1 2 2 2 
			 Child Support Agency 0 1 7 0 
			 Pension, Disability and Carers Service 2 0 1 1 
			 Total 8 4 20 29 
		
	
	
		
			  2006 
			   Number of convictions by Agency 
			  Nature of Offence  Jobcentre Plus  Corporate Centre  Child Support Agency  Pension, Disability and Carers Service 
			 Theft-Shoplifting 1 - - - 
			 Act of outraging public decency 1 - - - 
			 Possession of a Class A substance 1 - - - 
			 Carried in a vehicle taken without consent 1 - - - 
			 Theft - Burglary - - - 1 
			 Theft - - - 1 
			 Harassment  1 - - 
			 Escaping lawful custody 1 - - - 
		
	
	
		
			  2007 
			   Number of convictions by Agency 
			  Nature of Offence  Jobcentre Plus  Corporate Centre  Child Support Agency  Pension, Disability and Carers Service 
			 Failing to stop after an accident 1 - - - 
			 Driving without insurance - 1 - - 
			 Driving whilst disqualified - 1 - - 
			 Theft -  1 - 
		
	
	
		
			  2008 
			   Number of convictions by Agency 
			  Nature of offence  Jobcentre Plus  Corporate Centre  Child Support Agency  Pension, Disability and Carers Service 
			 Handling stolen goods 1 - - - 
			 Harassment 1 - - - 
			 Failing to provide a specimen of breath   1  
			 Assault -Actual bodily harm 2 - - - 
			 Common assault 1 - 1 - 
			 Forgery - - 2 - 
			 Perjury by witness - - 1 - 
			 Possession of Class A substance 1 - - - 
			 Drink driving 3 2 - - 
			 Theft - - 1 - 
			 Drunk and disorderly 1 - - - 
			 Battery - - 1 - 
			 Criminal damage - - - 1 
		
	
	
		
			  2009 
			   Number of convictions by Agency 
			  Nature of offence  Jobcentre Plus  Corporate Centre  Pension, Disability and Carers Service 
			 Sexual offences against a minor 1 - - 
			 Battery 2 - - 
			 Theft - Shoplifting 1 - - 
			 Making off without paying 1 - - 
			 Drunk and disorderly - - 1 
			 Possessing intoxicating liquor in a sports ground 1 - - 
			 Fraud 2 - - 
			 Common assault 1 - - 
			 Drink driving 8 2 - 
			 Driving without insurance 1 - - 
			 Threatening behaviour 3 - - 
			 Drug driving 1 - - 
			 Public indecency 1 - - 
			 Criminal damage 1 - - 
			 Possession of a Class B substance 1 - - 
			 Unknown - no offence stated 1 - - 
		
	
	The Child Support Agency ceased to be an Agency of the Department from 1 November 2008.

Olympic Games: Canada

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials from her Department are planning to attend the winter Olympics in Vancouver in February 2010; and what estimate she has made of the cost of such attendance.

Jonathan R Shaw: Since 1999 the Government have published on an annual basis a list of all overseas visits by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500, as well as the total cost of all ministerial travel overseas. From 2007-08 the list was extended to include all Ministers. The list also provides information on the number of officials who accompany Ministers. Copies are available in the Libraries of the House. Information for 2009-10 will be published as soon as the information is available.
	All travel by Ministers and civil servants is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code and Civil Service Management Code respectively.

Pathways to Work: Autism

Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what mechanisms are in place to ensure Pathways to Work providers support people with autism.

Jonathan R Shaw: Pathways is a flexible menu of different support options tailored to the needs of each customer. This can include work-focused interviews, help finding and applying for jobs, Condition Management Programmes, training and extra money to boost in-work income. Customers with autism receive a service which is tailored to them as Pathways is available to customers across the full range of health conditions and disabilities.

Pensioners: Social Security Benefits

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners were in a household in receipt of  (a) pension credit and  (b) winter fuel allowance in Ashford constituency in 2008-09.

Angela Eagle: The information requested is detailed in the following tables:
	
		
			  Recipients of pension credit in Ashford constituency 
			  May each year  Household recipients  Individual beneficiaries 
			 2008 4,120 5,150 
			 2009 4,160 5,240 
			  Notes: 1. Numbers rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Pension credit is claimed on a household basis-household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a partner and beneficiaries are the number of claimants in addition to the number of partners for whom they are also claiming. 3. Parliamentary constituencies and local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant ONS postcode directory.  Source: DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 
		
	
	
		
			  Recipients of winter fuel payments in Ashford  constituency 
			   Household recipients  Individual beneficiaries 
			 Winter 2008-09(1) 17,180 24,310 
			 (1) The last year for which information is available.  Notes: 1. Figures rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant ONS postcode directory.  Source: DWP Information Directorate 100 per cent. data.

Social Security Benefits

Brooks Newmark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in  (a) England,  (b) Essex and  (c) Braintree constituency are in receipt of incapacity benefit; and how many of these have been in receipt of incapacity benefit for more than 12 months.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 20 January 2010
	The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  T otal number in receipt of incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance and the number in receipt for more than one year,  as at  May 2009 
			   Total  Duration over one year 
			 England 1,925,320 1,791,510 
			 Essex local authorities 39,440 36,630 
			 Braintree constituency 3,030 2,800 
			  Notes: 1. Data rounded to the nearest ten; totals may not sum due to rounding. 2. Data does not include claimants of employment and support allowance or income support on the grounds of incapacity.  Source: Information Directorate 100 per cent. Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study

Social Security Benefits: Eligibility

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will make it her policy to remove the benefits eligibility criterion that requires terminal illness to only be taken into account if it is terminal within a six month period.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 21 January 2010
	 The benefits eligibility criterion acknowledge that it is unreasonable to expect individuals who are in the last stages of a progressive disease and who are reasonably expected to die within six months to serve the normal qualifying periods before receiving benefit assistance. There are no plans to change the eligibility criterion.

Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate has been made of the net effect on expenditure from the public purse of the reclassification of benefits claimants as a result of ATOS Medical assessments  (a) since the start of the ATOS Medical contract and  (b) in the last 12 months.

Jonathan R Shaw: The information requested is not available.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

Children: Day Care

Fraser Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many childcare places have been created in Houghton and Washington East constituency since 2000.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on the number of child care places is not available for parliamentary constituencies.

Extracurricular Activities: Birmingham

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) out-of-school and  (b) holiday play schemes were created in Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency in the last three years.

Dawn Primarolo: Ofsted have collected data on the number of registered child care providers on a quarterly basis from March 2003. Information on the number of out-of-school schemes is unavailable as this data is not collected for parliamentary constituencies. Ofsted do not collect data on the number of holiday play schemes and so this information is also unavailable.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change for what reasons the Carbon Reduction Commitment User Guide on his Department's website has not been updated to reflect changes made since the publication of the Government's responses to the consultation on the draft order to implement the commitment in October 2009.

Joan Ruddock: The CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme User Guide has been updated and was placed on our website on 19 January 2010. The guide has been amended to reflect both policy changes set out in the Government Response to the CRC consultation published on 7 October and the legal detail of the final draft order to implement the CRC which we also laid in Parliament on 19 January 2010.

Departmental Drinking Water

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department has spent on bottled drinking water since its establishment; and if he will make a statement.

Joan Ruddock: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has spent nothing on bottled drinking water.

Departmental Housing

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many  (a) empty and  (b) occupied residential properties his Department owns; and what recent estimate he has made of the (i) potential annual rental and (ii) total book value of those (A) empty and (B) occupied residential properties.

Joan Ruddock: The Department does not own any properties.

Departmental Internet

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what guidance his Department provides to its employees on involvement in online social media in an official capacity.

Joan Ruddock: The Department for Energy and Climate Change provides the following guidance to its employees based on Cabinet Office guidelines. The guidance is available to all staff on the Department's intranet.
	The Civil Service Code still applies when communicating online, whether through a blog, a discussion forum, leaving comments on videos or photos, or using social media channels such as Twitter. If your contribution is based on knowledge you have because you work at DECC, carefully consider whether you would be compromised if your posting was picked up by a journalist.
	The main principles are:
	Be credible: Be accurate, fair, thorough and transparent.
	Be consistent: Encourage constructive criticism and deliberation. Be cordial, honest and professional at all times.
	Be responsive: When you gain insight, share it where appropriate.
	Be integrated: Wherever possible, align online participation with other offline communications.
	Be a civil servant: Remember that you are an ambassador for your organisation. Wherever possible, disclose your position as a representative of your department or agency.
	You should:
	Disclose your position as a representative of your department or agency unless there are exceptional circumstances, such as a potential threat to personal security. Never give out personal details like home address and phone numbers.
	Always remember that participation online results in your comments being permanently available and open to being republished in other media. Stay within the legal framework and be aware that libel, defamation, copyright and data protection laws apply. This means that you should not disclose information, make commitments or engage in activities on behalf of Government unless you are authorised to do so. This authority may already be delegated or may be explicitly granted depending on your organisation.
	Also be aware that this may attract media interest in you as an individual, so proceed with care whether you are participating in an official or a personal capacity. If you have any doubts, take advice from your line manager.

Departmental Internet

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 13 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 1045-8W, on departmental internet, how many  (a) unique visitors and  (b) page impressions were received by each website listed in (i) each of the last three years and (ii) 2009-10 to date.

Joan Ruddock: holding answer 19 January 2010
	 The unique visitors and page impressions for the last three years and 2009-10 to date are provided in the following table where the data is available.
	
		
			   Financial year 
			  Website  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10( 1) 
			 www.decc.gov.uk 
			 Unique visits - - 37,230 423,803 
			 Page impressions - - 286,629 3,123,031 
			 http://actonco2.direct.gov.uk/actonco2/home.html 
			 Unique visits - - 588,806 772,923 
			 Page impressions - - 2,165,618 2,721,070 
			 https://www.energynpsconsultation.decc.gov.uk/ 
			 Unique visits - - - 30,126 
			 Page impressions - - - 149,424 
			 www.sedbuk.com (on a calendar year basis) 
			 Unique visits 158,054 196,833 218,115 235,678 
			 Page impressions 1,826,183 2,562,988 2,775,346 3,098225 
			 www.Hfccat-demo.org 
			 Unique visits 54,372 64,572 91,601 64,778 
			 Page impressions 10,928 18,340 22,466 18,874 
			 www.corwm.org.uk 
			 Unique visits - - 9,003 7,820 
			 Page impressions - - 44,908 30,738 
			 www.og.decc.gov.uk 
			 Unique visits - - - 71,500 
			 Page impressions - - - 235,700 
			 https://www.og.decc.gov.uk/EIP/pages/help.htm 
			 Unique visits - - - 2,020 
			 Page impressions - - - 4,010 
			 www.ensg.gov.uk 
			 Page impressions - - 83,648 97,000 
			 www.planningrenewables.org.uk 
			 Unique visits - - 14,413 7,609 
			 Page impressions - - 93,926 41,521 
			 www.renewables-advisory-board.org.uk 
			 Page impressions - 74,027 39,1689 322216 
			 www.ukrenewables.com 
			 Unique visits (note 2008-09 figures available date from 8 February 2009 to 31 March 2009) - - 2110 9076 
			 Page impressions (note 2008-09 figures available date from 8 February 2009 to 31 March 2009) - - 8089 39,852 
			 www.decc.gov.uk/offsetting 
			 Unique visits - - 1,626 6,713 
			 Page impressions - - 19,306 67,114 
			 www.actoncopenhagen.gov.uk 
			 Unique visits - - - 185,020 
			 Page impressions - - - 884,505 
			 (1 )To date.

Insulation: Houseboats

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assistance his Department provides to owners of residential craft in respect of insulation and heating efficiency where the craft is used as a main residence.

Joan Ruddock: The opportunities to reduce the carbon emissions and heating bills of residential craft homes are limited due to the inherent lack of scope for key energy efficiency measures, such as cavity wall and loft insulation. Moreover, under the carbon emissions reduction target (CERT), energy suppliers are only obliged to promote energy saving measures to residences connected directly to main energy networks.
	However, owners of residential craft are able to take advantage of CERT subsidies if purchasing certain DIY materials and energy saving technologies. Items such as insulation panels and low energy light bulbs frequently receive heavy subsidies under CERT in national retail outlets and are available at discounted rates to all consumers.

Radioactive Waste: Waste Management

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether the National Policy Statement on nuclear energy will include provisions on policy on disposal sites for nuclear waste.

David Kidney: The policy on the disposal for higher activity radioactive wastes is set out in the Managing Radioactive Waste Safely (MRWS) White Paper (June 2008).
	The current consultation on the Nuclear National Policy Statement does not include the geological disposal facility development. The MRWS White Paper makes clear that no decision on whether geological disposal will be considered by the Independent Planning Commission (IPC) has yet been made. However, the Government are currently inclined to look towards applying the new planning system and we consider that a geological disposal facility is likely to be regarded as a nationally significant infrastructure project. Should the Government decide in future that radioactive waste should be dealt with by the IPC, the Government would set out the national policy in a National Policy Statement, which would be finalised following an appraisal of sustainability, public consultation and parliamentary scrutiny.

Tidal Power

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the potential for the generation of electricity from tidal power off the south coast of England.

David Kidney: holding answer 26 January 2010
	The Government commissioned the updating of the UK Marine Renewable Energy Resources Atlas
	http://www.renewables-atlas.info/
	in 2007. The charts in the Atlas indicate the distribution of potential resource for the future deployment of renewable energy technologies-wind, wave and tidal. The Atlas represents the most detailed regional description of potential marine energy resources in UK waters completed to date at a national scale, and will be used to help guide policy and planning decisions for future site leasing rounds.
	We also commissioned in 2009, a screening study for marine energy development in English and Welsh Waters and we will be considering the findings of the report before deciding on whether to progress with a strategic environmental assessment for English and Welsh waters.
	Analysis of the data suggests there are pockets of potential for generating energy from tidal resource, in particular off the Isle of Wight and the Dorset coast, but these are at a level significantly lower than elsewhere in the UK. At present the South coast is not viewed by the commercial sector as a prime area for tidal resource but as technologies develop we may see devices which are well suited to the lower velocity of tidal flow available from the region.

Uranium: Exports

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much reprocessed uranium in  (a) oxide and  (b) uranium hexafluoride (UF6) has been exported to each destination since January 2009; for what purpose in each case; who the owner is of each consignment; and what transport route was used for each consignment.

David Kidney: Since January 2009 there has been only one export of reprocessed uranium from the UK. In compliance with all appropriate transport regulations, 107.5 tonnes of uranium in the form of uranium trioxide was exported from Sellafield to Russia on behalf of two existing reprocessing customers in Germany and the Netherlands. The uranium was transported by rail from Sellafield to Hull and then by ship to Russia. The uranium will be processed for manufacture into nuclear fuel.
	The export licences for this shipment were approved following the receipt of satisfactory end user undertakings from the consignee. The details of the specific customers involved is commercially confidential information, contained in appropriate contractual documents.

HEALTH

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many alcohol-related  (a) deaths and  (b) hospital admissions there have been in each year since 1997.

Gillian Merron: Information on alcohol admissions is available at:
	www.nwph.net/alcohol/lape/download.htm
	Information on alcohol related death is available at:
	www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=14496

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children under the age of 18 were admitted to hospital with an  (a) primary and  (b) secondary diagnosis related to alcohol in each strategic health authority in each of the last three years.

Gillian Merron: The number of admissions of patients under the age of 18 with a primary or secondary alcohol-related condition by strategic health authority of residence is presented in the following table:
	
		
			  Number of admissions of patients aged under 18 with an alcohol-related condition by strategic health authority of residence 
			   2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			  Strategic  h ealth  a uthority  Total  Primary alcohol-related diagnosis  Secondary alcohol-related diagnosis  Total  Primary alcohol-related diagnosis  Secondary alcohol-related diagnosis  Total  Primary alcohol-related diagnosis  Secondary alcohol-related diagnosis 
			 North East 1,126 382 744 1,081 328 753 961 265 696 
			 North West 3,093 1,388 1705 2,933 1,215 1718 2,548 1,049 1,499 
			 Yorkshire and The Humber 1,523 591 932 1,513 529 985 1,374 454 920 
			 East Midlands 990 362 629 1,176 348 827 1,117 304 813 
			 West Midlands 1,723 763 960 1,631 729 902 1,397 607 790 
			 East of England 1,032 376 656 1,073 337 736 880 266 614 
			 London 1,307 569 738 1,440 675 765 1,224 559 665 
			 South East Coast 1,049 448 601 1,068 458 610 967 373 593 
			 South Central 876 370 506 890 349 541 849 320 529 
			 South West 1,572 574 998 1,500 532 967 1,380 475 906 
			 Unknown/no fixed abode 174 81 92 196 81 115 135 65 70 
			 England 14,465 5,904 8,561 14,501 5,582 8,919 12,832 4,736 8,096 
			  Notes: Includes activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector.  Alcohol-related conditions The number of alcohol-related admissions is based on the methodology developed by the North West Public Health Observatory. Figures for under 16s only include admissions where one or more of the following alcohol-specific conditions were listed: Alcoholic cardiomyopathy (I42.6) Alcoholic gastritis (K29.2) Alcoholic liver disease (K70) Alcoholic myopathy (G72.1) Alcoholic polyneuropathy (G62.1) Alcohol-induced pseudo-Cushing's syndrome (E24.4) Chronic pancreatitis (alcohol induced) (K86.0) Degeneration of nervous system due to alcohol (G31.2) Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of alcohol (F10) Accidental poisoning by and exposure to alcohol (X45) Ethanol poisoning (T51.0) Methanol poisoning (T51.1) Toxic effect of alcohol, unspecified (T51.9) Number of episodes in which the patient had an alcohol-related primary or secondary diagnosis. These figures represent the number of episodes where an alcohol-related diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. Each episode is only counted once in each count, even if an alcohol-related diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record.  Ungrossed data Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (ie the data are ungrossed).  Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Finished admission episodes are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. It should be noted that admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.  Primary diagnosis The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the HES data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. Secondary diagnosis As well as the primary diagnosis, there are up to 19 (13 from 2002-03 to 2007-08 and six prior to 2002-03) secondary diagnosis fields in HES that show other diagnoses relevant to the episode of care.  Data quality HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts in England. Data is also received from a number of independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain.  Assessing growth through time HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. The quality and coverage of the data have improved over time. These improvements in information submitted by the NHS have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. Some of the increase in figures for later years (particularly 2006-07 onwards) may be due to the improvement in the coverage of independent sector activity. Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example, a number of procedures may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and may no longer be accounted for in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time.  Assignment of episodes to y ears Years are assigned by the end of the first period of care in a patient's hospital stay.  Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The NHS Information Centre for health and social care

Asthma: Drugs

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made by each primary care trust in the provision of inhalers which do not contain chlorofluorocarbons.

Ann Keen: This information is not held centrally. However the vast majority of inhalers containing chlorofluorocarbons have now been phased out and those remaining are expected to be discontinued during 2010.

Asthma: Drugs

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has made to encourage general practitioners to implement the 2008 National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidance on inhaled corticosteroids for the treatment of chronic asthma.

Ann Keen: The Department is currently preparing good practice guidelines for children and adults with asthma, for use by general practitioners and other health care professionals, that will make reference to existing National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidance on the management and treatment of asthma.

Asthma: Health Services

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to ensure that all asthma patients have personal asthma action plans.

Ann Keen: The Department has a commitment to ensure the national health service offers everyone with a long-term condition a care plan by the end of 2010. The NHS Next Stage Review 'High Quality Care for All' re-states this commitment. The Department has provided a range of support for implementing personalised care plans, including: publishing guidance for NHS commissioners on what care planning and self-care is (January 2009); support for NHS work force, through publishing an information booklet (April 2009); and publication of a Primary Care Service Specification (November 2009) to support commissioning from primary care providers.
	The Department is currently preparing good practice guidelines for children and adults with asthma that will reinforce the value of personal asthma action plans and continue to encourage clinicians to ensure that every patient has one tailored to their needs. This is entirely consistent with the recommendation that all patients with long-term conditions should have a personalised care plan by the end of 2010.

Asthma: Health Services

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what preparations his Department has made for managing the symptoms of asthma patients who contract  (a) swine influenza and  (b) seasonal influenza during the winter.

Ann Keen: Every year people of all ages, including those with asthma, are eligible for vaccination against seasonal influenza, and can have this at their general practitioner's (GP's) surgery. This year all people with asthma should also have been contacted by their GP's surgery in order to receive a vaccination against swine influenza. This measure was introduced to ensure that people with asthma were protected from influenza of both kinds.
	GPs were advised by the Royal College of General Practitioners that people with asthma who contracted swine influenza may have additional respiratory difficulties. GPs were advised to follow the clinical guidelines for management of asthma in the event that a patient's asthma control worsened as a result of contracting swine influenza, in addition to prescribing antiviral therapy such as Tamiflu in order to shorten the course of swine influenza.

Blood: Donors

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have received blood components from 80 or more donors in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: This Information is not collected centrally.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received on making myalgic encephalomyelitis a notifiable illness for the purposes of blood donation.

Ann Keen: The Department has received 31 representations on making myalgic encephalomyelitis a notifiable illness in the last six months. There have also been a number of representations on this subject received by the Chief Medical Officer.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department plans to  (a) commission and (b) evaluate research on the possible health effects of receiving blood donated by a person with myalgic encephalomyelitis.

Ann Keen: The Department has no current plans to directly commission research on this issue. However, the Medical research Council has designated myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome a priority research area, and will fund proposals of sufficient quality. The UK Blood Services together with the Health Protection Agency are undertaking a study of the prevalence of a rodent virus recently linked to myalgic encephomyelitis, which will be used to inform a risk assessment.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department plans to test patients for xenotropic murine leukaemia virus-related illnesses.

Ann Keen: There are currently no plans to test patients for xenotropic murine leukaemia virus-related virus.

CJD

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many potential vCJD treatments are being tested in the UK; and what stage each trial has reached.

Gillian Merron: There is no proven therapy for patients with variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD), nor are there any clinical trials for vCJD treatments in progress in the United Kingdom.
	Some current UK vCJD patients are being treated with Pentosan Polysulphate, which may extend life, on an individual basis.
	The Department is currently providing funding for a six-year multi-million pound collaboration between the MRC Prion Unit and GlaxoSmithKline with the objective of developing an effective drug for human prion infection and disease. In addition the National Prion Monitoring Cohort study, also funded by the Department at the MRC Prion Unit, has as an objective to monitor use of anti-prion agents if and when used.

CJD

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of vCJD have been diagnosed in each of the last 10 years  (a) in total and  (b) in each genotype.

Gillian Merron: The National Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease Surveillance Unit:
	http://www.cjd.ed.ac.uk/
	reports the number of cases diagnosed as:
	
		
			   Diagnosis 
			 2000 27 
			 2001 25 
			 2002 16 
			 2003 16 
			 2004 8 
			 2005 6 
			 2006 6 
			 2007 1 
			 2008 1 
			 2009 3 
			 2010 0 
			 Total 109 
		
	
	All cases of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) where the genotype is known are MM at codon 129 of the PrP gene.
	There has been one case of possible vCJD reported in a patient with MV genotype at codon 129 of the PrP gene. This patient did not fulfil the probable clinical case definition for vCJD as set by the World Health Organization, and is therefore not included in the figures for definite or probable vCJD.

CJD

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have contracted vCJD from contaminated blood via blood transfusion in each of the last five years; how many such people contracted vCJD from non-leucodepleted blood; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: None.

Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence: Finance

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the reason for the cost of the finance function for  (a) the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence and  (b) the NHS Litigation Authority referred to in the publication Benchmarking the Back Office: Central Government; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: The costs of these functions are currently under review as part of the Operational Efficiency programme.

Departmental Disclosure of Information

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether  (a) agencies and  (b) non-departmental public bodies for which his Department is responsible sell information on a commercial basis to (i) companies or individuals in the private sector and (ii) other organisations.

Phil Hope: In common with executive agencies, and non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) across central Government that have Crown status, the Department's agencies and NDPBs make most of their information available for free re-use under the PSI Click-Use Licence. Some information is contained in priced publications. Government trading funds, including the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency for which Department's Ministers have responsibility, are able to charge for the services they provide in order to cover their costs. This includes charging for the provision of information to other public bodies, commercial organisations and individuals.

Departmental Pay

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total monetary value of Senior Civil Service (SCS) non-consolidated performance pay awards was in his Department in each of the last five years; how many and what proportion of SCS staff in each pay band received awards in each year; and how much in each award category was received by staff in each pay band each year.

Phil Hope: Non-consolidated performance payments to senior civil servants are made under the terms set out in the Government's response to the recommendations of the independent Senior Salaries Review Body. A close and effective link between pay and performance and increased use of variable pay is a key element of the reward arrangements for the senior civil service. The total spend on non-consolidated performance pay in each of the last five years was given in the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 25 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 544-546W.
	The numbers and proportions of senior civil servants receiving non-consolidated performance pay in 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07 is available only at disproportionate cost as the Department's human resources information system does not hold the information in a format which can easily be translated into performance groups. For the last two years, the numbers of senior civil servants in receipt of end year non-consolidated performance pay was:
	
		
			   2008-09  
			   Number and percentage of staff in performance related pay category  
			  Grade  1  2  3B  3NB  4  
			   No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  Total no. 
			 SCS 1 38 25 59 39 26 17 20 13 10 7 153 
			 SCS 2 12 22 18 33 12 22 6 11 7 13 55 
			 SCS 3 2 20 3 30 1 10 1 10 3 30 10 
			 Other - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 
			 Total 52 24 80 37 39 18 27 12 21 10 219 
			  Note: Groups 1, 2 and 3B received non-consolidated performance pay whereas groups 3NB and 4 did not. 
		
	
	
		
			  2007-08 
			   Number and percentage of staff in performance related pay category  
			  Grade  1  2  3B  4  
			   No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  No.  %  Total no. 
			 SCSI 21 14 43 29 43 29 42 28 149 
			 SCS2. 5 9 13 24 20 37 16 30 54 
			 SCS3. 1 11 4 44 1 11 3 33 9 
			 Total 27 13 60 28 64 30 61 29 212 
			  Note: Groups 1,2 and 3B received non-consolidated performance pay whereas group 4 did not.

Departmental Pay

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been paid in non-consolidated performance pay awards to officials in his Department in  (a) each year between 1997 and 2004 and  (b) 2008-09.

Phil Hope: A close and effective link between pay and performance and increased use of variable pay is a key element of the Department's reward strategy for all its staff.
	The Department changed its payroll provider in 2003-04. Information on performance bonus payments prior to 2004-05 is available only from individual payslips. To retrieve information for years prior to 2004-05 would therefore involve disproportionate cost. Information for the years 2004-05 and 2008-09 was given in the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 25 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 544-546W.

Departmental Pay

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been paid in bonuses to civil servants in his Department in each year since 2006.

Phil Hope: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 25 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 544-546W.

Departmental Pay

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) year-end and  (b) in-year bonuses were paid to officials in his Department in each of the last three years; and how much was paid in such bonuses in each such year.

Phil Hope: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 25 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 544-546W.

Eyesight: Testing

Hazel Blears: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many pensioners in Salford constituency have received a free eye test in each of the last five years.

Ann Keen: The information is not available in the format requested.
	The number of national health service sight tests for persons aged 60 and over, in England in 2008-09 is available in Table C1 of Annex C of the General Ophthalmic Services: Activity Statistics for England and Wales, Year Ending 31 March 2009 report.
	Information is provided by primary care trust (PCT) and by strategic health authority (SHA), but is not available by parliamentary constituency. Information on the number of NHS sight tests by patient eligibility is available at a local level from 2007-08. At a national level, the number of NHS sight tests by patient eligibility is provided from 1996-97 to 2008-09. This is available in Table A1 of Annex C in the same report.
	This report, published on 19 August 2009, has already been placed in the Library and is also available on the website of the information centre for health and social care:
	www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/gosactivity0809p2
	 Notes:
	1. From 1 April 1999, eligibility for a free NHS sight test was extended to everyone aged 60 or over. Patients may qualify for an NHS sight test on more than one criterion. However, they would only be recorded against one criterion on the form.
	2. Patients are more likely to be recorded according to their clinical need rather than their age. For example, a patient aged over 60, with glaucoma is likely to be recorded in the glaucoma category only. The count by eligibility is therefore approximate. Patients may also have had more than one sight test in the specified time period.

Health Services: Houghton-le-Spring

Fraser Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding his Department has allocated for  (a) the treatment of heart disease and  (b) cancer care in Houghton and Washington East constituency in the last five years.

Ann Keen: The information requested is not collected centrally. Information on programme budgeting estimated expenditure of cancer and tumours and problems of circulation in the Sunderland Teaching Primary Care Trust (PCT) is shown in the following tables:
	
		
			  Sunderland Teaching PCT-programme budgeting estimated expenditure on own population on cancer and tumours 
			  Financial year  Estimated expenditure on own population on cancer care (£000) 
			 2004-05 19,730 
			 2005-06 20,000 
			 2006-07 23,126 
			 2007-08 27,665 
			 2008-09 34,886 
		
	
	
		
			  Sunderland Teaching PCT-programme budgeting estimated expenditure on own population on problems of circulation category and subcategories 
			  (£000) 
			  Financial year  Problems of circulation  Coronary heart disease  Cerebrovascular disease  Problems of rhythm  Problems of circulation (other) 
			 2004-05 37,608 - - - - 
			 2005-06 38,782 - - - - 
			 2006-07 37,614 12,884 5,462 2,438 16,830 
			 2007-08 43,542 19,965 2,482 3,749 17,346 
			 2008-09 43,224 16,352 5,796 2,577 18,499 
			  Notes: 1. The programme budgeting data collection is complex, therefore expenditure figures are best estimates rather than precise measurements. Year on year comparisons are not straightforward due to annual refinements to the data collection methodology and changes to underlying data sources. 2. Subcategory level data were collected for the first time in 2006-07 and tend to be less robust than main category data as they are smaller categories and are therefore subject to greater variation. 3. Figures include expenditure across all sectors. Disease specific expenditure do not include expenditure on prevention or general practitioner expenditure.  Source: Annual PCT programme budgeting financial returns

Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements

Alan Beith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he had with the Isle of Man government before he made his decision to terminate the reciprocal health agreement with the Isle of Man; whether he proposed any alternative financial terms for a continuing health agreement; what the reasons were for his decision; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: Ministers took the decision to end the current bilateral health care agreement with the Isle of Man on the basis that it did not represent value for money for the UK taxpayer and the wide availability of travel insurance. Discussions prior to the decision being made were at official level and the UK Government proposed no alternative financial mechanism.

Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date the reciprocal agreement for medical cover with  (a) the Channel Islands and  (b) the Isle of Man was terminated; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: The Government ended its agreement with the Channel Islands on 31 March 2009, and is ending its agreement with the Isle of Man on 1 April 2010, as they do not represent value for money for the United Kingdom taxpayer and travel insurance is widely available. Tourists will continue to receive free accident and emergency treatment. However, they will now be expected to have insurance to cover the cost of other treatment.

Health Services: Salford

Hazel Blears: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average time was for which a resident of Salford waited for  (a) cancer treatment to start,  (b) a heart by-pass operation,  (c) a hip replacement and  (d) a cataract removal from the time of first presenting to a GP in (i) 1997 and (ii) the latest period for which figures are available.

Ann Keen: The information is not available in the format requested. Table 1 shows the average (median) referral to treatment waiting times in weeks for admitted patients' resident within the Salford Primary Care Trust (PCT) area for the specialities listed.
	Statistics on average waiting times between urgent referral and treatment for cancer are not collected centrally. The cancer waiting time standard of a maximum wait of 62 days from urgent referral for suspected cancer to first cancer treatment was introduced for all patients from December 2005. Statistics showing overall performance are published on a quarterly basis on the Department of Health website at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Statistics/Performancedataandstatistics/HospitalWaitingTimesandListStatistics/CancerWaitingTimes/index.htm
	Table 2 shows the performance against this standard for the first and latest available period on this standard(1) (January - March 2006 and July - September 2009) for Salford residents and England overall.
	
		
			  Table 1 
			   Cardiothoracic Surgery  Trauma and Orthopaedics  Opthalmology 
			   March 2008  November 2009  March 2008  November 2009  March 2008  November 2009 
			 Salford PCT 5.9 5.5 8.2 10.0 10.6 10.9 
			  Notes: 1. Figures on Referral to Treatment (RTT) waiting times for admitted patients are presented on an adjusted basis (i.e. excluding periods for which the RTT waiting time clock was paused). 2. RTT admitted data were first collected on an adjusted basis in March 2008. 3. RTT waiting times have only been collected since March 2007, only down to treatment function (specialty) level, and only on an adjusted basis (i.e. excluding periods for which the RTT waiting time clock was paused) since March 2008.  Source:  Department of Health 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 
			  Percentage 
			  Organisation  2005-06 Quarter 3  2009-10 Quarter 2 
			 Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust 96.5 90.9 
			 Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 93.2 80.5 
			 Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 90.5 91.2 
			 England(1) 91.1 85.7 
			 (1) Note that due to a change in reporting methodology from 1 January 2009, figures for the two periods are not directly comparable.

Health Services: Salford

Hazel Blears: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) nurses,  (b) doctors and  (c) dentists there were in Salford in (i) 1997 and (ii) the latest date for which information is available; and what assessment he has made of the standard of healthcare provided in Salford in each of those periods.

Ann Keen: The following table shows the number of nurses, doctors and dentists in national health service organisations in Salford in 1997 and 2008.
	Regarding the assessment made of the standard of healthcare provided in Salford in each of these periods, the role of the Department is to secure adequate resources for funding the NHS and to set out a strategic framework for the NHS to work within. This allows decisions about local NHS services to be taken at a local level. Local NHS organisations are best placed to decide what staff they require to deliver services that best meet the needs of the local population.
	NHS Hospital and Community Health services (HCHS) qualified nurses, medical and dental doctors and general practitioners (GP) and GP practice nurses.
	
		
			  As at 30 September each year 
			   Numbers (headcount) 
			   1997  2008 
			   HCHS qualified nurses  HCHS medical and dental doctors  GPs  Practice nurses  HCHS qualified nurses  HCHS medical and dental doctors  GPs  Practice nurses 
			 Salford Primary Care Trust (PCT)(3,4) (1)- (1)- (1)- (1)- 370 26 163 98 
			 Salford Royal Hospitals NHS Trust 1,112 308 (2)- (2)- 1,727 558 (2)- (2)- 
			 Central Manchester and Manchester Children's University Hospitals NHS Trust(5) 2,288 762 (2)- (2)- 3,274 994 (2)- (2)- 
			 Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust(6) (1)- (1)- (2)- (2)- 3,264 1,242 (2)- (2)- 
			 (1) Denotes not available (2) Denotes not applicable (3) The PCT figure excludes data for medical hospital practitioners and medical clinical assistants, most of whom are GPs working part time in hospitals and have been excluded to avoid double counting. (4) PCTs first came into existence in 2001, therefore data for 1997 is not available. (5) Central Manchester and Manchester Children's University Hospitals NHS Trust was formed in 2001 from a complete merger of Central Manchester Healthcare NHS Trust and Manchester Children's Hospital NHS Trust. Figures for 1997 are an aggregate of these two predecessor organisations. (6 )Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust was formed in 2002 by merging acute services from four other NHS Trusts. It is not possible to accurately map figures from the workforce census for part mergers, therefore 1997 data has not been provided.  Data quality:  Workforce statistics are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and PCTs in England. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data. Processing methods and procedures are continually being updated to improve data quality. Where this happens any impact on figures already published will be assessed but unless this is significant at national level they will not be changed. Where there is impact only at detailed or local level this will be footnoted in relevant analyses.  Source:  The Information Centre for health and social care

Hospital Wards

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many single rooms there are in each hospital which has opened since 2001; and how many there were in each hospital which they replaced.

Ann Keen: The Department collects data on the proportion of single rooms in new national health service hospitals opened since 2003 with a capital value of over £25 million. Information on these schemes is contained in the following table.
	Information is not collected centrally on facilities that have been replaced as a result of new hospital schemes. All schemes with a capital value over £25 million have met the Department's 2001 guidance, which stated that the proportion of single rooms in new hospital developments should aim to be 50 per cent. but should not fall below 20 per cent. and must be higher than the facilities they are replacing. The policy and design guidance for the provision of single rooms in mental health accommodation is 100 per cent.
	Each trust makes an informed choice regarding the appropriate percentage of single room provision based on practical considerations such as site restrictions, affordability as well as clinical and operational limitations.
	
		
			  New hospital facilities costing over £25 million opened since 2003-04 
			  NHS organisation  Capital value (£ million)  Scheme description  Proportion of beds in single rooms (percentage) 
			  2003-04
			 Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust 30 Construction of new mental health facility at Fairmile. (1)- 
			 West Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust 60 New District General Hospital 25 
			 Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust 55 Redevelopment of Hexham General Hospital 75 
			 South Tees Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 122 Site redevelopment and centralisation of acute hospital services at James Cook University Hospital 40 
			 St. George's Healthcare NHS Trust 46 Neuro cardiac unit 20 
			 Camden and Islington NHS Trust 26 Adult Mental Health Unit. 100 
			 Surrey Primary Care Trust (PCT) 29 The provision of a local care centre at Farnham Hospital 100 
			 
			  2004-05
			 Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 40 Maternity and gynaecology unit at Royal Preston Hospital (1)- 
			 Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust 25 A and E and Children's development at Royal Albert Edward Infirmary 18 
			 Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust 35 Mental health facilities at Woofield Road and St. Charles. (1)- 
			 Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust 57 Heart and Lung Centre 27 
			 Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 32 Total site redevelopment (1)- 
			 Barnet PCT 40 Edgware Community hospital development. 37 
			 
			  2005-06
			 Dudley Group of Hospitals NHS Trust 137 Redevelopment and rationalisation 36 
			 University College London Hospitals NHS Trust 422 Rationalisation of sites 34 
			 West London Mental Health NHS Trust 36 Dangerous and severe personalities Unit at Broadmoor 100 
			 Guys and St. Thomas NHS Foundation Trust 50 Evelina Children's Hospital (1)- 
			 Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust 25 Renal Centre 22 
			 Kirklees PCT 27 Provision of six Primary Care Centres (2)- 
			 Sandwell and W Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust 26 Ambulatory Care Centre at City Hospital (2)- 
			 East London NHS Foundation Trust 34 Mental Health unit in Tower Hamlets (1)- 
			 Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust 31 South West Cardiothoracic Unit Centre 100 
			 The Cardiothoracic Centre Liverpool NHS Trust 49 Cardiac Centre in Liverpool 43 
			 Wandsworth PCT 75 Redevelopment of Queen Mary's Roehampton. Including specialist rehabilitation and amputee services. 59 
			 North West London Hospitals NHS Trust 69 Modernisation of Central Middlesex Hospital 33 
			 
			  2006-07
			 Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre NHS Trust 45 Cardiac Centre 40 
			 Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust 47 Partial redevelopment of Stoke Mandeville Hospital 30 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Trust 32 Reprovision of Mental Health services at St. George's Hospital Morpeth 100 
			 East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust 30 Burnley Hospital development-Phase V 32 
			 Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust 83 Redevelopment of Mental Health facilities, community care services and crisis homes 100 
			 East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust 110 Closure of Blackburn Royal Infirmary and expansion of Queens Park hospital 31 
			 Newham University Hospital NHS Trust 55 Reprovision of Acute Services from St. Andrews to Newham General Hospital 39 
			 University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust 379 New District General Hospital at Walsgrave 30 
			 Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust 53 Cardiac Centre 50 
			 Northamptonshire Teaching PCT 28 Danetre Community Hospital in Daventry 37 
			 The Whittington Hospital NHS Trust 32 Redevelopment of Acute Hospital services 55 
			 The Lewisham Hospital NHS Trust 72 Redevelopment of University Hospital including the separation of elective and emergency procedures 21 
			 Barking, Havering and Redbridge Hospitals NHS Trust 238 Rationalisation of two sites onto one adjacent to the existing Oldchurch hospital in Romford 20 
			 Hampshire PCT 36 Redevelopment of Lymington Hospital 50 
			 Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust 134 Reprovision of specialist services from the Radcliffe Infirmary to a new build on the John Radcliffe Hospital site 65 
			 Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre NHS Trust 37 Orthopaedics/medicine redevelopment 33 
			 
			  2007-08
			 Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust 35 New Hadfield Wing to replace Victorian Vickers wards 50 
			 Cambridge University Hospital NHS Trust 76 Elective Care Centre, Genetics and Diabetes at Addenbrookes 38 
			 Brighton and Sussex University NHS Trust 36 Relocation of Royal Alexandra Hospital for sick Children 46 
			 West London Mental Health NHS Trust 27 Women's enhanced medium secure services 100 
			 Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 59 Essex Heart and Lung Centre (1)- 
			 Kingston Hospital NHS Trust 33 Redevelopment of Kingston Hospital 23 
			 Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust 265 Regional Oncology and Cancer centre at St James University Hospital. 42 
			 
			  2008-09
			 Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust 299 Reconfiguration of Acute Hospital Services in Newcastle. Renal and Elderly services at Freeman Hospital. Relocation of Northern Centre for Cancer to Freeman. Redevelopment of Royal Victoria Infirmary 56 
			 Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust 67 Reconfiguration of Cancer facilities 52 
			 Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust 129 Integrated Cancer Centre 50 
			 University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust 55 Maternity and oncology unit 50 
			 South West Essex Teaching PCT 30 Reprovision of Brentwood Community Hospital 32 
			 West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust 40 Acute Accident Unit 25 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (St Helen's Diagnostic and Treatment Unit opened October 2008; Whiston Hospital due to open April 2010) 338 Development of St Helen's Hospital (Diagnostic and Treatment Unit) and Whiston Hospital (Acute hospital services) 50 
			 Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust 32 Garrett Anderson Centre-emergency care, day surgery, elective care and critical care 50 
			 
			  2009-10
			 Derby Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 312 Consolidation of Acute Services on Derby City General Hospital site enabling the development of a community facility on the Derby Royal Infirmary site 35 
			 Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 512 Major work to provide three hospitals for Women, Children, Adults and a specialist Eye Hospital (UC) 31 
			 Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 326 Rebuild and refurbishment of the King's Mill site and Mansfield community Hospital. Relocation of Acute services currently spread across three sites onto a 50 
			 Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust 236 single site (which will include a Ministry of Defence MDHU) (UC) 33 
			 Lincolnshire Teaching PCT 29 New Community Hospital for South Holland 43 
			 South Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust 32 Medium and Low security Mental Health unit on Runwell hospital site 100 
			 Tees, Esk and Wear Valley NHS Foundation Trust / County Durham PCT 30 Joint procurement for new adult mental health facilities at Lanchester Road Hospital and Stanley Primary Care centre for the PCT 100 
			 (1) Not known. These schemes are at foundation trusts for which the Department does not hold the requested information. Information for these organisations can be obtained by contacting the chairman of the foundation trusts. (2) No in-patient services.

Hospitals: Admissions

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people aged  (a) between 0 and 15,  (b) between 16 and 24,  (c) between 25 and 39,  (d) between 40 and 59 and  (e) 60 years and over, who were admitted to hospital in December 2009 and January 2010 with conditions attributable to severe weather conditions.

Mike O'Brien: Data on hospital admissions directly attributable to weather conditions are not collected centrally.
	The NHS Information Centre for health and social care publishes Hospital Episode Statistics, which includes hospital admissions in England.

Mental Health Services: Prisons

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to review the management of mentally ill offenders within the prison system.

Phil Hope: The Government published 'Improving Health, Supporting Justice: the national delivery plan of the Health and Criminal Justice Programme Board' on 17 November 2009. A copy has already been placed in the Library. The plan responds to Lord Bradley's review of people with mental health problems or learning disability in the criminal justice system and describes a wide range of policies and activities to improve the services available for offenders with mental health problems including the delivery of health services for them while in prison.

Mental Illness

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made on the proportion of people who have a mental health disorder; and on what evidence his estimate is based.

Phil Hope: One in six adults has a common mental disorder at any one time. This estimate is based on the 2007 Survey of Psychiatric Morbidity Among Adults living in private households in England.

National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse: Manpower

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse has employed in each year since its inception.

Gillian Merron: The National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse (NTA) Annual Accounts from 2001-02 to 2008-09 record the number of staff employed by the NTA as:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2001-02 27 
			 2002-03 38 
			 2003-04 79 
			 2004-05 113 
			 2005-06 137 
			 2006-07 143 
			 2007-08 173 
			 2008-09 184 
		
	
	The activities of the NTA have increased significantly since its inception in 2001-02.
	The NTA's role and responsibilities now include the Integrated Drug Treatment System (IDTS), Drug Intervention Programme (DIP), National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS), National Alcohol Treatment Monitoring System (NATMS), and it has increased its capacity to support local delivery, including providing guidance and support to Drug Action Teams, ensuring they are able to provide drug misusers with a full range of services, as well as monitoring performance.

NHS: ICT

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS spent on information technology in the last three financial years; how much of this money was spent on  (a) software development and testing,  (b) software applications,  (c) staff training in information technology and  (d) the cost of new hardware and software.

Mike O'Brien: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

NHS: Manpower

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 5 January 2010,  Official Report, column 273W, on NHS: manpower, how many full-time equivalent  (a) managers and  (b) senior managers were in post in each (i) primary care trust and (ii) strategic health authority in each of the last five years.

Ann Keen: A table outlining the full-time equivalent number of managers and senior managers from 2004 to 2008 has been placed in the Library. The 2009 Workforce Census numbers are due to be released at the end of March.

NHS: Pay

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average starting salary of an NHS doctor was in  (a) Jarrow constituency,  (b) South Tyneside,  (c) the North East and  (d) England in each year since 1997.

Ann Keen: Doctors are on national pay scales. For medical graduates entering their first post as a national health service doctor, the average starting in each year since 1997 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Average starting salary of a newly qualified doctor 
			   £ 
			 1997-98 15,230 
			 1998-99 15,800 
			 1999-2000 16,710 
			 2000-01 17,260 
			 2001-02 17,935 
			 2002-03 18,585 
			 2003-04 19,185 
			 2004-05 19,703 
			 2005-06 20,295 
			 2007-08 21,052 
			 2008-09 21,862 
			 2009-10 22,190 
			  Note: The starting salary quoted is for a new qualified doctor. Until 2006-07, this was known as a pre-registration house officer. This grade has since been replaced by a foundation house officer year 1.

NHS: Pay

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average starting salary of an NHS nurse was in  (a) Jarrow constituency,  (b) South Tyneside,  (c) the North East and  (d) England in each year since 1997.

Ann Keen: The average starting salary of an NHS nurse since 1997 is shown in the following table. As nurses pay is set nationally this figure would have been the same in Jarrow constituency, South Tyneside, the North East and England.
	
		
			  Year( 1)  Average starting salary (£)( 2, 3) 
			 1997 12,230 
			 1998 12,630 
			 1999 14,400 
			 2000 14,890 
			 2001 15,445 
			 2002 16,005 
			 2003 16,525 
			 2004 17,060 
			 2005 18,698 
			 2006 19,166 
			 2007 19,454 
			 2008 20,225 
			 2009 20,710 
			 (1) As at 1 April each year. (2) The average starting salary of a NHS nurse is normally the minimum of the grade applicable to basic grade qualified nurses. (3) All the areas requested are covered by national pay schemes.

NHS: Pay

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average starting salary of an NHS dentist was in  (a) Jarrow constituency,  (b) South Tyneside,  (c) the North East and  (d) England in each year since 1997.

Ann Keen: Information on average starting salaries for national health service dentists is not collected centrally.
	Whilst there are opportunities for dentists to work as salaried employees of NHS trusts in both primary and secondary care roles, the majority of dentists provide primary dental care services within independent dental practices which contract with a primary care trust to provide NHS services. The remuneration arrangements for dentists working within the practice, either as the main contract holder or as partners, associates or employees of the practice owner, are an internal matter for the practice.

Prosthetics

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many prosthetic shoes have been rebuilt by the NHS for patients following leg operations in 2009-10; how many companies manufacture such shoes under contract with the NHS; with which such companies the NHS is in dispute over the contract; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: Information on the number of prosthetic shoes is not collected centrally. There are four main prosthetic suppliers that provide clinical services and prosthetic components to the national health service within the United Kingdom and two others that supply prosthetic components only.
	NHS contracts are agreed and managed locally, allowing organisations the ability to order direct or enter into contract with individual manufacturers and suppliers. Any contractual disputes will be resolved locally and central information about such issues are not collected.

Slough

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out, with statistical information related as directly as possible to the Slough constituency, the effects on Slough of his Department's policies and actions since 2000.

Phil Hope: The Government have put in place a programme of national health service investment and reform since 1997 to improve service delivery in all parts of the United Kingdom. 93 per cent. of people nationally now rate the NHS as good or excellent. The NHS Constitution contains 25 rights and 14 pledges for patients and the public including new rights to be treated within 18 weeks, or be seen by a cancer specialist within two weeks and a NHS Health Check every five years for those aged 40-74 years.
	There is significant evidence that these policies have yielded considerable benefits for the Slough constituency. For example:
	Figures for October 2009 show that in Berkshire East Primary Care Trust (PCT):
	92 per cent. of patients whose treatment involved admission to hospital started their treatment within 18 weeks.
	97 per cent. of patients whose treatment did not involve admission to hospital started their treatment within 18 weeks.
	In September 2009, at Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, 98.6 per cent. of patients spent less than four hours in accident and emergency from arrival to admission, transfer or discharge.
	Between September 1997 and September 2008, the number of consultants at Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has increased from 76 to 120. Between September 1997 and September 2008 the estimated number of nurses has increased from 1,154 to 1,386.
	Between September 2001 and September 2008, the number of general practitioners per 100,000 within Berkshire East PCT has increased from 54.9 to 62.3.
	96.8 per cent. of urgent GP referrals to Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust with suspected cancer are seen by a specialist within two weeks of the referral.
	Berkshire East PCT opened its GP-led health centre on 15 December 2009 at Upton Hospital in Slough. The Slough Walk-in Centre offers longer opening hours, meaning that any member of the public will be able to see a GP or nurse between 8 am and 8 pm, seven days a week, 365 days a year.
	There are two private finance initiative (PFI) schemes in the area that serve this constituency: a £19 million PFI scheme from Berkshire West PCT that opened in March 2004 and a £30 million PFI scheme from Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust that opened in April 2003.
	Although statistical information is not available at a local level, Slough will have also benefited from national policies in other areas. For example:
	Since 1997, gross current expenditure on personal social services has increased by around 70 per cent. in real terms, with around 105,000 households now receiving intensive home care and 3,076 new extra care housing units-exceeding the original target of 1,500 new extra care units.
	Other strategies currently being implemented are:
	Subject to parliamentary approval, the Personal Care at Home Bill will guarantee free personal care for 280,000 people with the highest needs and help around 130,000 people who need home care for the first time to regain their independence.
	Shaping the Future of Care Together Green Paper, published in July 2009, sets out a vision of a National Care Service for all adults in England that is fair, simple and affordable. The Department has consulted widely on this reform and is currently analysing the responses, which will feed into a White Paper later this year.
	The National Carer's Strategy-Carers at the heart of 21st century families and communities-launched in 2008.
	The first National Dementia Strategy was published in February 2009.
	Valuing People Now-a three year strategy for people with learning disabilities-was published in January 2009.
	New Horizons: A Shared Vision for Mental Health was launched in December 2009 to maintain improvements in mental health services, combined with a new cross-Government approach to promoting public mental health.
	Since 1998, there are now 2.4 million fewer smokers in England as a result of the Government's comprehensive tobacco control strategy, which has a measurable impact on reducing smoking prevalence.
	Child obesity levels are reducing due to the efforts of families across England, supported by the Government's obesity strategy. In 2008, 13.9 per cent, of children (aged two to 10) in England were classified as obese, compared with 17.3 per cent. in 2005.
	Overall, life expectancy at birth for men has increased from 74.5 years (1995-97 data) to 77.7 years (2006-08 data) while for women, life expectancy at birth has increased from 79.6 years (1995-97 data) to 81.9 years (2006-08 data).

Surgery: Technology

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the use of robotic radiosurgery systems in the national health service.

Ann Keen: Robotic radiosurgery is not currently available as a standard treatment within the national health service and so no such assessment has been made. The National Radiotherapy Implementation Group has set up a working group to look into the uses and different methods of delivery of stereotactic body radiotherapy.

Swine Flu: Vaccination

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in each primary care trust  (a) are eligible for and  (b) have been administered swine influenza vaccine to date.

Gillian Merron: At this stage, data on the number of people eligible to receive swine influenza vaccine by primary care trust (PCT) need to be validated by PCTs and the Health Protection Agency. This is ongoing and will be completed once the survey is completed. Therefore, we are not in a position to report the number eligible at present.
	Provisional data (the latest that are available) by PCT for the number of patients that have received swine influenza vaccine from general practitioners and for the number of frontline healthcare workers vaccinated are given in the following table. These provisional figures are for the number people that have received at least one dose of vaccine. Most people need only one dose of swine influenza vaccine but some require two doses given at least three weeks apart (data on the number of people that have completed their vaccination course are not yet available).
	
		
			  PCT  Provisional figures for the number of people administered swine flu vaccine by general practitioners (up to 31 December 2009)  Provisional figures for the number of healthcare workers that have received swine influenza vaccine (up to 17 January 2010) 
			 Ashton, Leigh and Wigan PCT 12,029 483 
			 Barking and Dagenham PCT 5,109 321 
			 Barnet PCT 11,092 652 
			 Barnsley PCT 13,211 447 
			 Bassetlaw PCT 5,345 172 
			 Bath and North East Somerset PCT 10,603 665 
			 Bedfordshire PCT 15,771 621 
			 Berkshire East PCT 16,265 721 
			 Berkshire West PCT 18,909 641 
			 Bexley Care Trust (PCT based) 3,659 543 
			 Birmingham East and North PCT 14,019 267 
			 Blackburn with Darwen PCT 8,044 239 
			 Blackpool PCT 2,018 471 
			 Bolton PCT 11,674 632 
			 Bournemouth and Poole PCT 26,376 794 
			 Bradford and Airedale PCT 31,279 666 
			 Brent Teaching PCT 10,876 430 
			 Brighton and Hove City PCT 12,841 448 
			 Bristol PCT 25,843 773 
			 Bromley PCT 12,931 546 
			 Buckinghamshire PCT 16,822 897 
			 Bury PCT 750 539 
			 Calderdale PCT 6,202 504 
			 Cambridgeshire PCT 31,240 450 
			 Camden PCT 8,405 274 
			 Central and Eastern Cheshire PCT 30,823 859 
			 Central Lancashire PCT 17,590 854 
			 City and Hackney Teaching PCT 5,464 446 
			 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly PCT 33,546 1,205 
			 County Durham PCT 30,630 46 
			 Coventry Teaching PCT 14,450 828 
			 Croydon PCT 13,520 453 
			 Cumbria PCT 27,370 1,544 
			 Darlington PCT 4,634 539 
			 Derby City PCT 13,986 167 
			 Derbyshire County PCT 35,445 894 
			 Devon PCT 37,999 1,707 
			 Doncaster PCT 18,869 914 
			 Dorset PCT 27,335 1,553 
			 Dudley PCT 12,514 570 
			 Ealing PCT 11,380 526 
			 East and North Hertfordshire PCT 23,447 0 
			 East Lancashire PCT 12,548 672 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire PCT 16,059 524 
			 East Sussex Downs and Weald PCT 12,031 709 
			 Eastern and Coastal Kent PCT 22,274 1,742 
			 Enfield PCT 8,041 205 
			 Gateshead PCT 13,009 262 
			 Gloucestershire PCT 41,131 2,578 
			 Great Yarmouth and Waveney PCT 11,969 586 
			 Greenwich Teaching PCT 8,419 390 
			 Halton and St. Helens PCT 7,413 540 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham PCT 3,311 118 
			 Hampshire PCT 63,426 1,454 
			 Haringey Teaching PCT 7,394 439 
			 Harrow PCT 9,775 402 
			 Hartlepool PCT 2,600 150 
			 Hastings and Rother PCT 6,897 362 
			 Havering PCT 13,027 726 
			 Heart of Birmingham Teaching PCT 12,137 274 
			 Herefordshire PCT 11,462 470 
			 Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale PCT 7,147 514 
			 Hillingdon PCT 14,206 735 
			 Hounslow PCT 8,987 345 
			 Hull PCT 12,381 223 
			 Isle of Wight Healthcare PCT 2,704 1,443 
			 Islington PCT 8,447 434 
			 Kensington and Chelsea PCT 6,989 414 
			 Kingston PCT 5,173 189 
			 Kirklees PCT 20,414 759 
			 Knowsley PCT 7,466 267 
			 Lambeth PCT 7,350 423 
			 Leeds PCT 40,616 522 
			 Leicester City PCT 10,644 362 
			 Leicestershire County and Rutland PCT 27,663 603 
			 Lewisham PCT 7,466 553 
			 Lincolnshire PCT 41,938 3,762 
			 Liverpool PCT 22,576 861 
			 Luton PCT 4,346 480 
			 Manchester PCT 15,523 1,262 
			 Medway PCT 8,037 552 
			 Mid Essex PCT 15,542 850 
			 Middlesbrough PCT 6,934 453 
			 Milton Keynes PCT 9,340 345 
			 Newcastle PCT 13,982 526 
			 Newham PCT 12,340 616 
			 Norfolk PCT 32,076 1,073 
			 North East Essex PCT 11,687 562 
			 North East Lincolnshire Care Trust Plus (PCT based) 8,853 436 
			 North Lancashire PCT 11,654 122 
			 North Lincolnshire PCT 10,495 588 
			 North Somerset PCT 8,176 519 
			 North Staffordshire PCT 13,280 279 
			 North Tyneside PCT 11,784 1,763 
			 North Yorkshire and York PCT 51,803 490 
			 Northamptonshire PCT 38,798 409 
			 Northumberland Care Trust (PCT based) 25,240 717 
			 Nottingham City PCT 18,641 1,208 
			 Nottinghamshire County PCT 44,794 696 
			 Oldham PCT 9,707 1,289 
			 Oxfordshire PCT 35,100 598 
			 Peterborough PCT 10,422 1,066 
			 Plymouth Teaching PCT 16,410 483 
			 Portsmouth City Teaching PCT 6,635 547 
			 Redbridge PCT 11,425 414 
			 Redcar and Cleveland PCT 6,950 186 
			 Richmond and Twickenham PCT 4,332 991 
			 Rotherham PCT 14,731 1,266 
			 Salford PCT 6,380 766 
			 Sandwell PCT 10,389 438 
			 Sefton PCT 12,131 285 
			 Sheffield PCT 33,419 1,790 
			 Shropshire County PCT 22,406 469 
			 Solihull Care Trust (PCT based) 8,815 336 
			 Somerset PCT 34,394 1,852 
			 South Birmingham PCT 11,807 509 
			 South East Essex PCT 14,046 265 
			 South Gloucestershire PCT 11,630 836 
			 South Staffordshire PCT 35,808 755 
			 South Tyneside PCT 8,137 141 
			 South West Essex PCT 17,847 494 
			 Southampton City PCT 10,846 810 
			 Southwark PCT 5,687 513 
			 Stockport PCT 11,899 249 
			 Stockton-on-Tees PCT 10,446 357 
			 Stoke on Trent PCT 17,363 698 
			 Suffolk PCT 33,617 491 
			 Sunderland Teaching PCT 17,535 186 
			 Surrey PCT 42,201 816 
			 Sutton and Merton PCT 14,937 513 
			 Swindon PCT 13,896 391 
			 Tameside and Glossop PCT 9,552 609 
			 Telford and Wrekin PCT 6,612 703 
			 Torbay Care Trust (PCT based) 10,195 834 
			 Tower Hamlets PCT 9,307 688 
			 Trafford PCT 7,276 948 
			 Wakefield District PCT 23,208 1,426 
			 Walsall Teaching PCT 14,558 329 
			 Waltham Forest PCT 4,821 3 
			 Wandsworth PCT 10,886 625 
			 Warrington PCT 10,221 286 
			 Warwickshire PCT 29,504 1,216 
			 West Cheshire PCT 17,124 645 
			 West Essex PCT 9,570 359 
			 West Hertfordshire PCT 24,582 837 
			 West Kent PCT 18,750 874 
			 West Sussex PCT 42,960 957 
			 Westminster PCT 7,059 441 
			 Wiltshire PCT 29,757 658 
			 Wirral PCT 19,079 667 
			 Wolverhampton City PCT 9,529 844 
			 Worcestershire PCT 25,664 799 
			 Total 2,460,292 381,149

CABINET OFFICE

Green ICT Delivery Group

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on the contribution of her Department's Green ICT delivery group to the Government's presentation to the Copenhagen climate change conference.

Tessa Jowell: I have regular meetings and discussions with ministerial colleagues on all areas of my Department's work.
	This includes ensuring that the Government's Green ICT strategy supports delivery of the wider sustainability policy across the public sector.
	Good progress is already being made, with over £6.8 million and 12,000 tonnes of carbon savings as reported in our One Year On Report.

NHS Charities

Douglas Carswell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what discussions she has had with the Charity Commission and the Secretary of State for Health on proposed changes to the accounting treatment of NHS charities.

Angela Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for Wellingborough (Mr. Bone).

10 Downing Street: Repairs and Maintenance

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the original provisional budget was for the works in No. 10 Downing Street under planning application reference 09/00619/LBC.

Angela Smith: Information on capital expenditure on improving Cabinet Office buildings, including the Downing Street estate, is included in the annual Cabinet Office resource accounts.

Business: Kent

Damian Green: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many small businesses started up in  (a) Ashford constituency and  (b) Kent in each of the last 12 years.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated 26 January 2010:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning how many small businesses started up in (a) Ashford constituency and (b) Kent in each of the last 12 years (313506).
	Annual statistics on business births, deaths and survival are available for 2002 onwards from the ONS release on Business Demography at
	www.statistics.gov.uk
	The table below contains the latest statistics available on business births for Kent county and Ashford by employment size band.
	
		
			  Enterprise births in Kent county and Ashford by employment size band 
			0-4  5-9  10-19  20+  Total 
			 2002 Kent county 5,395 475 140 35 6,045 
			  Ashford 485 50 20 5 560 
			
			 2003 Kent county 5,435 515 165 30 6,145 
			  Ashford 480 50 20 5 555 
			
			 2004 Kent county 6,355 430 130 30 6,945 
			  Ashford 575 50 10 0 635 
			
			 2005 Kent county 5,925 410 110 25 6,470 
			  Ashford 535 45 10 0 590 
			
			 2006 Kent county 5,705 410 130 20 6,265 
			  Ashford 580 35 5 0 620 
			
			 2007 Kent county 6,200 425 135 25 6,785 
			  Ashford 630 40 10 5 685 
			
			 2008 Kent county 5,665 360 160 35 6,220 
			  Ashford 585 35 20 5 645

Charities: Schools

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the policy of the Charity Commission is on undertaking investigations of whether schools with charitable status are promoting the public benefit; and what statutory provisions govern such Charity Commission investigations.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Charity Commission. I have asked the Commission to reply.
	 Letter from Andrew Hind, dated 20 January 2010:
	As Chief Executive of the Charity Commission, I have been asked to respond to your question on what the policy of the Charity Commission is on undertaking investigations of whether schools with charitable status are promoting the public benefit; and what statutory provisions govern such Charity Commission investigations (312287).
	In July last year, the Charity Commission published public benefit assessments of twelve charities, which included five charitable fee-charging schools. We conducted these assessments on a co-operative basis with the charities concerned. In the case of the schools, we worked with two that had volunteered to be assessed and with three that agreed to be assessed after we had approached them.
	In terms of our policy and the context in which this is set, we carried out these assessments following the Charities Act 2006 which:
	changed the definition of charity by removing the presumption that certain categories of charity, including those which advance education, are for the public benefit. The revised definition means that all charities have to show that they have purposes which are for the public benefit; and
	gave the Charity Commission, as the independent regulator of charities, a statutory objective to promote awareness and understanding of the operation of the public benefit requirement.
	These public benefit assessments are part of our work in furtherance of this statutory objective. We explain our policy on carrying out these assessments in section H of Charities and Public Benefit which, following extensive consultation, we published in January 2008. It is guidance to which all charities must have regard and which sets out the approach and factors we take in all those cases where we are looking at the public benefit of an organisation. In summary, we said that:
	in order to provide clear information about how the public benefit requirement is met by different groups of charities, we will issue guidance about what public benefit means for different types of charity and that such guidance would include pilot assessments of the public benefit of individual charities in different sub-sectors; and
	we were likely to carry out detailed public benefit assessments on charities most affected by the removal of the presumption of public benefit and about which public benefit concerns were raised during the debate on the Charities Bill, such as fee-charging charities.
	These first assessments have provided practical examples on the application of the public benefit principles and guidance which should help other school charities to meet the requirement themselves. We think that, at this stage, these are sufficient for schools and we have not included schools in the second round of public benefit assessments which we started in December. Public benefit will, however, continue to be an essential element of our separate, reactive casework with charities (including schools) which we would not routinely publicise. In these cases we will explore public benefit in more detail only where:
	it is necessary to do so (because, for example, we must be satisfied that the revised aims of a charity will continue to be charitable before agreeing to a change of purpose), and
	there is a high risk that public benefit will be difficult to demonstrate-examples of high risk factors include private benefits, novel or controversial purposes, narrowly defined beneficiary classes and high fees.
	In terms of the statutory provisions governing these assessments, the Commission has power, both at common law and under the Charities Act 1993, to do anything which may fairly be regarded as necessary, conducive or incidental to carrying out its statutory objectives and functions. Section 1D of the Charities Act 1993 (as inserted by the Charities Act 2006) requires us (so far as is necessary) to have regard to the principles of best regulatory practice in the performance of our functions. I should also mention, for the sake of completeness only, that we have formal inquiry and protection powers under section 8 and 18 of the Charities Act 1993: we have not used these powers in relation to charitable schools and public benefit and would only do so where serious misconduct or mismanagement is involved or where it is necessary to protect charity assets.
	We published a short briefing for MPs about these assessments last July, and I will arrange for a copy to be placed in the Library of the House.
	I hope this is helpful.

Civil Servants: Location

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether her Department has issued recent guidance to non-departmental bodies and executive agencies on the outsourcing of civil service jobs abroad.

Angela Smith: The Department has not issued guidance to non-departmental bodies and executive agencies on the outsourcing of civil service jobs abroad.

Civil Servants: Recruitment

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the  (a) job title,  (b) salary range and  (c) sponsoring public body was of each job vacancy posted on the Civil Service Recruitment Gateway that was only advertised on the private part of the website in the last three months.

Angela Smith: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for West Bromwich, East (Mr. Watson), then Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office, on 2 June 2009,  Official Report, column 422W.

Deaths: Infectious Diseases

Anne Milton: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office in how many cases  (a) staphylococcus aureus,  (b) meticillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus and  (c) Clostridium difficile has been mentioned on death certificates in each region in each year since 1997.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated 27 January 2010:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking in how many cases  (a) staphylococcus aureus,  (b) meticillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus and  (c) Clostridium difficile has been mentioned on death certificates in each region in each year since 1997. (313937)
	The tables attached provide the number of deaths where (a) Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) (Table 1), (b) meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (Table 2) and (c) Clostridium difficile (C difficile) (Table 3) was mentioned anywhere on the death certificate, either as the underlying cause or as a contributory factor, in each government office region in England, for the years 1997 to 2008 (the latest year available). Figures for 1997, 1998 and 2000 are not available for Table 3.
	Although Staphylococcus aureus, meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Clostridium difficile are defined by the Health Protection Agency as healthcare associated infections, it is not possible to state whether the deceased was a patient at the time of death, or where the infection was acquired.
	
		
			  Table 1 :  Number of deaths where Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) was mentioned on the death certificate, government office regions in England, 1997  to  2008( 1,2,3) 
			   Deaths (persons) 
			  Government office region  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 North East 38 32 32 47 47 51 84 95 100 104 106 102 
			 North West 95 119 98 126 126 141 173 168 237 236 239 194 
			 Yorkshire and The Humber 54 68 85 94 114 111 127 163 197 168 170 139 
			 East Midlands 61 74 74 76 103 91 119 131 148 181 153 129 
			 West Midlands 92 103 120 141 126 134 132 156 241 246 249 178 
			 East of England 87 85 99 112 122 124 152 177 196 241 248 129 
			 London 108 101 132 135 153 147 153 179 225 257 227 159 
			 South East 118 126 156 204 208 203 226 256 348 359 297 205 
			 South West 68 91 94 118 131 137 157 189 268 233 252 160 
			 (1) Identified using the methodology described in Office for National Statistics: Report: Deaths involving MRSA; England and Wales, 2008. Health Statistics Quarterly 43, 38-42 (2) Based on boundaries as of 2009 (3) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2. Number of deaths where meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was mentioned on the death certificate, government office regions in England, 1997  to  2008( 1,2,3) 
			   Deaths (persons) 
			  Government office region  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 North East 11 15 13 23 31 35 56 68 78 82 85 88 
			 North West 43 60 48 62 55 78 112 120 184 174 199 171 
			 Yorkshire and The Humber 29 30 40 45 64 77 79 114 150 126 130 105 
			 East Midlands 19 28 36 44 66 50 76 86 116 136 116 98 
			 West Midlands 48 50 64 81 78 82 93 108 203 183 202 147 
			 East of England 49 35 49 68 81 83 100 129 143 187 192 105 
			 London 55 47 58 84 90 100 107 130 187 189 174 133 
			 South East 61 64 73 131 137 141 171 179 258 292 224 167 
			 South West 38 42 48 67 79 90 108 135 217 187 195 123 
			 (1) Identified using the methodology described in Office for National Statistics: Report: Deaths involving MRSA; England and Wales, 2008. Health Statistics Quarterly 43, 38-42. (2) Based on boundaries as of 2009. (3) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3. Number of deaths where Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) was mentioned on the death certificate, government office regions in England, 1999,  2001-08( 1,2,3,4) 
			   Deaths (persons) 
			  Government office region  1999  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 North East 54 65 76 103 129 222 207 328 347 
			 North West 134 157 174 220 271 334 513 1010 980 
			 Yorkshire and The Humber 60 87 114 117 153 181 267 510 486 
			 East Midlands 63 66 65 95 137 411 917 823 502 
			 West Midlands 86 121 140 225 283 534 1115 1255 771 
			 East of England 82 144 187 230 246 395 748 1035 465 
			 London 138 188 209 223 238 529 756 1001 534 
			 South East 164 171 206 312 338 507 1016 1080 750 
			 South West 137 150 154 195 351 535 762 874 630 
			 (1) Identified using the methodology described in Office for National Statistics: Report: Deaths involving Clostridium difficile: England and Wales, 2008. Health Statistics Quarterly 43, 43-47. (2) All deaths in England and Wales are coded by the Office for National Statistics according to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD). The Tenth Revision (ICD-10) has been used since 2001. In the Ninth Revision of the ICD (ICD-9) there are no specific codes that would allow deaths mentioning Clostridium difficile to be easily identified. Figures for 1998 and 2000 are therefore not available as ICD-9 was used in these years. Deaths registered in 1999 were coded to both ICD-9 and ICD-10 as part of a special study to compare the two ICD revisions, and have therefore been used to give an additional year of data on deaths involving Clostridium difficle. (3) Based on boundaries as of 2009. (4) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year.

Departmental Consultants

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much consultants employed by her Department and its agencies have been paid  (a) in total and  (b) in reimbursable expenses in each of the last 10 years.

Angela Smith: The information requested for the Cabinet Office is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Government Departments: Internet

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many of the 1,499 Government websites identified for closure in the Varney review have  (a) been closed and  (b) not been closed.

Angela Smith: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
	 Letter from Mark Lund, dated 27 January 2010:
	regarding Government Websites.
	The purpose of closing websites is to package the content appropriately for the intended audience and put into a place easy to find and useful for them. The Varney review requested Departments undertake Website Reviews because the number was not at that time known. We have now got a robust process for identifying and recording government websites. Of the 1,700 websites identified by Departments by 31 December 2009, 907 were closed with a further 479 committed to be closed that are not yet closed.

Government Departments: Internet

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which websites were identified for closure by the Department Website Review; which of these have been closed; and what Department or other body sponsors or sponsored each website.

Angela Smith: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
	 Letter from Mark Lund, dated 27 January 2010:
	regarding Government Websites.
	Each Department is responsible for its own Website Review, with guidance and advice from the Cabinet Office and Central Office of Information. The list of websites that Departments have reported as closed and those which they have committed to close was placed in Parliament's Library. The list is the latest prepared and was up to date end of June 2009.

Government: Internet

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many websites are being operated by  (a) Government departments,  (b) executive agencies and  (c) non-departmental public bodies.

Angela Smith: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
	 Letter from Mark Lund, dated 27 January 2010:
	regarding Government Websites.
	As of 31 December 2009, Departments have reported through their Website Reviews that they are operating 1,700 websites minus the 907 they have closed, i.e. 793. Of these, 182 are run by Departments and 611 by Executive Agencies and NDPBs. No central record is held that distinguishes between Executive Agencies and NDPBs.

Life Expectancy

Theresa May: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the average life expectancy was for  (a) males and  (b) females in each (i) local authority area, (ii) parliamentary constituency, (iii) middle layer super output area and (iv) lower layer super output area in each of the last five years.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated 26 January 2010:
	The Director General for the Office for National Statistics has been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the average life expectancy was for (a) males and (b) females in each (i) local authority area, (ii) parliamentary constituency, (iii) middle layer super output area and (iv) lower layer super output area in each of the last five years. I am replying in his absence. (313164)
	Life expectancy figures are calculated as three-year rolling averages, and are published annually by ONS(1). A local government reorganisation took place on 1st April 2009, in which a number of former local authorities were merged to form new unitary authorities. Life expectancy figures on the latest boundaries are only available for 2006-08. Life expectancy figures based on the old boundaries are available for all five years (2002-04 to 2006-08). For completeness, both sets of figures have been provided in this Answer.
	Table 1 provides the period life expectancy at birth for (a) males and (b) females in each (i) local authority in England and Wales, for 2002-04 to 2006-08 using pre-April 2009 boundaries. Table 2 provides the period life expectancy at birth for (a) males and (b) females in each (i) local authority in England and Wales, for 2006-08 using post-April 2009 boundaries (the latest figures available). A copy of each table has been placed in the House of Commons library.
	Life expectancy figures for (ii) parliamentary constituencies, (iii) middle layer super output areas and (iv) lower layer super output areas are not available. Life expectancy cannot be reliably calculated for areas smaller than local authorities for similar time periods.
	(1) Office for National Statistics (2009). Report: Life expectancy at birth and at age 65 by local areas in the United Kingdom, 2006-08. Health Statistics Quarterly 44, 59-68.

Married People

David Laws: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many married couples there are in the UK; and how many such couples there are where both persons are under the age of 65, have not remarried, are living together in the same residence have children under the age of 18, and are not both in employment; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Dennis Roberts, dated January 2010:
	The Director General for the Office for National Statistics has been asked to reply to your request asking how many married couples there are in the UK; and how many such couples there are where both persons are under the age of 65, have not remarried, are living together in the same residence, have children under the age of 18, and are not both in employment; and if she will make a statement. I am replying in his absence. (312613)
	The number and type of families in the UK can be estimated using Annual Population Survey (APS) household data. The table below shows 2008 estimates from the APS for the family types requested. It is not possible to estimate from this source whether couples have or have not remarried. In addition, figures are based on dependent children (children aged under 16 and those aged 16 to 18 who have never married and are in full time education) rather than all children under the age of 18.
	For information, the estimate of married couples includes all married couples with and without children, and is the same as given in the letter from the Director General in Official Report 504, column 51.
	
		
			  Type of family  Number of couples in the UK (thousand) 
			 Married couples 12,170 
			 Married couples with all of the following characteristics: both persons are under the age of 65, the couple are living together in the same residence, the couple have dependent children, one or neither partners in the couple are in employment 1,388 
			  Note: These estimates do not include civil partnered or same-sex cohabiting couples.  Source: APS household data, January to December 2008, not seasonally adjusted

Married People: Statistics

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what changes have been made to the mechanisms by which information on marital status has been collected by the Office for National Statistics since 1997.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated 26 January 2010:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your request to the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what changes have been made to the mechanisms by which information on marital status has been collected by the Office for National Statistics since 1997. (313090)
	Information on marital status can be broadly separated into information that provides estimates of the population by marital status at a given point in time ('stocks'), and information on the movement of people between different marital status categories over a given period of time ('flows'). Both types of information are collected by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) through a variety of sources, and both types of information are used to calculate population estimates and projections by marital status. For most statistics on marital status, ONS currently publishes statistics for England and Wales only.
	With regard to both stocks and flows, the main change since 1997 in the collection of information on marital status has been the introduction of civil partnerships. The Civil Partnership Act 2004 came into force on 5 December 2005 in the UK. The Act enables same-sex couples aged 16 and over to obtain legal recognition of their relationship. Other than this change, the collection of information on marital status has remained largely unchanged since 1997.
	The main mechanisms for the collection of data on stock estimates by marital status are social surveys and censuses. Following the introduction of the Civil Partnership Act, questions in ONS social surveys (such as the Annual Population Survey) have been changed to allow the collection of information on the currently and previously civil partnered population. Information on revised survey questions is available in the following document:
	Harmonised Concepts and Questions for Social Data Sources: Primary Standards-Demographic information, household composition and relationships
	www.ons.gov.uk/about-statistics/harmonisation/primary-concepts-and-questions/P2.pdf
	The main mechanism for the collection of data on changes in marital status (flows) is the registration of vital events. Data on birth, death, marriage and civil partnership registrations are collected by the General Register Office (GRO), which supplies data to ONS for statistical purposes. Similarly, data on divorces and civil partnership dissolutions are supplied to ONS by the HM Court Service.
	The main change in marital status vital event registration since 1997 has been the collection of data on the formation and legal dissolution of civil partnerships. In addition, changes have been made to the registration of deaths (to identify deaths of the currently and previously civil partnered population) and the registration of births by parents' marital status (related to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act). Information on civil partnerships is available at the link below.
	www.statistics.gov.uk/CCI/nugget.asp?ID=1685

Public Sector: Public Appointments

David Drew: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  whether she plans to encourage Select Committees to hold pre-appointment hearings in respect of public sector appointments;
	(2)  whether she has plans to provide to Select Committees information on candidates short-listed for an appointment in respect of which they hold pre-appointment hearings.

Tessa Jowell: The Government have introduced pre-appointments hearings as part of a wider programme of work to strengthen the role of Parliament. Policy on pre-appointment hearings is set out in the White Paper The Governance of Britain-Constitutional Renewal. Copies are available from the Libraries of the House and online at:
	www.official-documents.gov.uk/document/cm73/7342/7342_i.asp

Public Sector: Termination of Employment

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether her Department has issued guidance to Government departments on the termination of employment of public sector workers on grounds of inefficiency.

Angela Smith: The Cabinet Office has not issued any guidance to Government Departments on the termination of employment of public sector workers.
	In relation the terms and conditions of service of staff, the Cabinet Office's remit covers the civil service.

Skin Cancer

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many cases of melanoma in  (a) adults and  (b) children have been reported in each primary care trust area since 1997.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated January 2010:
	As Director General for Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many cases of melanoma in (a) adults and (b) children have been reported in each primary care trust area since 1997.
	The latest available figures for newly diagnosed cases of melanoma (incidence) are for the year 2007. Please note that these numbers may not be the same as the number of people diagnosed with cancer, because one person may be diagnosed with more than one cancer.
	The tables attached provide the number of melanoma cases reported in (a) adults aged 16 years and over, for each primary care organisation in England, from 1997 to 2007 {Table 1), and (b) children aged under 16 years in England, from 1997 to 2007 {Table 2). A copy has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
	Figures have not been provided for children aged under 16 years for each primary care organisation, as these data are judged to be too detailed to preserve anonymity in cancer registration statistics.

Social Mobility Commission

Dai Davies: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what criteria will be used to appoint members of the Social Mobility Commission announced in Cm 7755, Unleashing Aspiration; what the Commission's budget will be in its first year; and whether this funding will be additional to funding announced in the pre-Budget report.

Angela Smith: In 'Unleashing Aspirations', published on 18 January 2010, the Government set out their response to the final report of the Panel on Fair Access to the Professions, and agreed to establish a Social Mobility Commission. It will give expert advice to Government and report on progress towards a fairer, more mobile society.
	A transition team has been set up within the Cabinet Office to make the necessary preparations for this Commission, which will follow shortly. The transition team will develop the detail of the Commission's governance, remit, funding and work programme. It will also advise on the appointment of members and the selection criteria for any appointments to the Commission.
	The budget for the Social Mobility Commission has yet to be established, and will form part of the consideration of the transition team.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Apprentices: Torbay

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of apprenticeships which will be taken up by people over 24 years old in Torbay constituency in the next five years.

Kevin Brennan: Information on projected apprenticeship volumes is not available by parliamentary constituency.
	In 2008/09, there were 190 apprenticeship starts by learners aged 25 and over in Torbay parliamentary constituency.
	Nationally, in our Skills Strategy (Skills for Growth, November 2009) we promised to boost advanced and higher apprenticeship opportunities for 19 to 30-year-olds.
	 Notes:
	1. Figures for parliamentary constituency are rounded to the nearest 10.
	2. This figure is based on age at start of programme and upon the home postcode of the learner.

Banks: Finance

Jim Cousins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the monetary value of Government-guaranteed loans issued by UK banks  (a) in total and  (b) via the credit guarantee scheme in the last 12 months.

Rosie Winterton: Under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee, the Government's loan guarantee scheme launched on 14 January 2009, 6,330 businesses have drawn down loans with a value of over £630 million as of 20 January 2010.

Banks: Finance

Jim Cousins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the monetary value of loans which remained outstanding in the Bank of England special liquidity scheme at the time the scheme closed.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: I have been asked to reply.
	The drawdown period for the Special Liquidity Scheme (SLS) closed on 30 January 2009. The nominal value of Treasury bills drawn down as of 30 January 2009 was £185 billion.
	Further details can be found at:
	http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/markets/marketnotice090203c.pdf

Business Link: Stroud

David Drew: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in Stroud constituency have received a health check from Business Link.

Rosie Winterton: Business Link does not break this data down by parliamentary constituency, but 237 businesses have received health checks in the Stroud District Council area, between October 2008 and 31 December 2009.

Business: Ashford, Kent

Damian Green: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in Ashford constituency have received a health check from Business Link.

Rosie Winterton: 252 health checks have been conducted in Ashford between the launch of the service on 23 October 2008 and 18 December 2009, the latest date for which figures are available.

Business: Government Assistance

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many  (a) small,  (b) medium-sized and  (c) large businesses in Eastbourne have received assistance under the business loan scheme since the inception of that scheme.

Rosie Winterton: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 14 December 2009,  Official Report, column 934W.

Business: Government Assistance

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to support small and medium-sized businesses during the recession; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: This Department has introduced a range of measures to help businesses through the global recession and is continuing to provide help to promote growth during the recovery. Small and medium-sized businesses can find information and support at
	www.businesslink.gov.uk/realhelp
	or by contacting the Business Link Helpline on 0845 6009006.
	Measures include:
	The Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) - encourages additional bank lending to viable businesses who have no or insufficient security and who would not otherwise secure a commercial loan. A £1.3 billion facility is in place to be accessed by the end of March 2010, and this was extended in the recent Pre-Budget Report for a further year to March 2011, with a £500 million budget for the financial year 2010-11. Over £1.09 billion of eligible EFG applications from over 9,700 firms have been granted, are being processed or assessed, and over 7,500 businesses have been offered loans totalling £763 million.
	The Capital for Enterprise Fund (CfEF) - a £75 million fund supporting viable business with equity or mezzanine investment aimed at releasing and sustaining growth and can invest between £200,000 and £2 million where the business has exhausted its borrowing capacity with lenders. Offers totalling over £76 million have been made to 50 businesses, of which thirty one offers worth £47.7 million are live. 15 businesses have received investment so far totalling £19.9 million. Businesses who would like to explore whether the fund might benefit them can contact the fund managers assigned to their geographical location through
	www.capitalforenterprise.gov.uk/portfolio
	Health Checks through Business Link which provide a free review of a business with a professional business adviser for hands-on advice and help accessing the full range of government help. To date, nearly 104, 000 businesses have benefited from health checks. 79 per cent. of SMEs accessing Health Checks were satisfied with the information provided and of those who accessed additional support, 93 per cent. were satisfied with this further assistance. 86 per cent. of all assisted businesses would recommend Health Checks to other businesses(1).
	(1) Early Assessment of Business Link Healthchecks - November 2009
	Encouraging prompt payment - Government Departments have committed to pay their bills within 10 days to help small businesses, and we have encouraged big companies to sign up to a Code of Practice to help their suppliers. Up to now, 758 organisations have signed up to the code, including 25 FTSE 100 companies. We are also helping business manage their finances (over 109, 000 guides on 'Help with managing your cashflow' have already been downloaded from the BusinessLink.gov.uk website).
	Additional flexibilities for SMEs were introduced into Train to Gain from January 2009 to help employers continue to train their staff through the recession in preparation for the recovery. These flexibilities included access to funding for repeat qualifications, the introduction of units of learning in business critical areas such as marketing and IT, and extension of the access to the leadership and management advisory service for very small SMEs (less than 10 employees). In 2008-09 academic year, over 559,800 SME employees have started courses through Train to Gain.
	In addition, the Solutions for Business (SfB) portfolio is the Government's long term, simplified offer of support products for business. Government provide about £2 billion of support to business through the portfolio. Solutions for Business products offer help with common issues such as accessing finance, innovation, business and manufacturing advice, research and development, knowledge sharing, skills and training, exporting and overseas trade, and resource efficiency, including low carbon. Small and medium-sized businesses can find information and support at
	www.businesslink.gov.uk/solutions

Business: Government Assistance

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what information his Department holds on the level of personal guarantees required by lenders in respect of the portion of each loan advanced under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme that is not guaranteed by the Government.

Rosie Winterton: The Department holds no information the level of personal guarantees required by a lender. Lenders are required to record whether or not a personal guarantee has been taken with respect to each EFG facility guaranteed. The level of personal guarantee is a matter for the lender concerned and will vary according to the commercial lending practices of each lender.
	Lenders are entitled to require a personal guarantee covering some or all the proposed EFG facility. That personal guarantee must be specific to the EFG facility and must not be solely or preferentially attributed to cover the lender's 25 per cent. exposure which is not covered by the Government 75 per cent. guarantee.
	Lenders are not permitted to take a direct charge over a principal private residence for a new EFG facility.

Cadbury Schweppes: Kraft Foods

Richard Burden: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent representations he has received on the proposed takeover of Cadbury by Kraft; and what discussions the Government has had with Kraft on that matter.

Ian Lucas: The Government have received numerous letters expressing concern about this matter. The Secretary of State has received written assurances from the chief executive of Kraft about Cadbury's production, legacy and workforce. The Secretary of State is also seeking an early meeting with Kraft senior management to hear how the company will fulfil the commitments they have made to Cadbury, its workforce and long term future.

Conditions of Employment

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the answer of 10 September 2007,  Official Report, column 2011W, on conditions of employment, what provisions of the Government's manifesto relating to the outcome of the National Policy Forum in July 2004 have  (a) been implemented and  (b) not been implemented.

Pat McFadden: I refer the right hon. Member to my earlier responses of 10 September, 17 October 2007,  Official Report, column 1148w and 14 September  Official Report, column 2182w, to his questions on similar issues.
	I reiterate that the Government continue to remain committed, on the conditions of employment, to fulfilling its May 2005 Manifesto over the course of this Parliament.

Departmental Fines

Edward Garnier: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what powers  (a) his Department and  (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies has to impose administrative penalties; what the statutory basis is for each such powers; and how much (i) his Department and its predecessors and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies has recovered in administrative penalties in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Pat McFadden: The information requested is not held centrally within the Department and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Letters from the executive agencies follow.
	 Letter from Stephen Speed, dated 21 December 2009:
	The Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has asked me to reply to your question what powers (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies has to impose administrative penalties; what the statutory basis is for each such powers; and how much (i) his Department and its predecessors and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies has recovered in administrative penalties in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.
	The Insolvency Service does not hold power to impose any administrative penalties.
	 Letter from Sean Dennehey, dated 21 December 2009:
	I am responding in respect of the Intellectual Property Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled 16 December 2009, to the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The Intellectual Property Office does not levy administrative financial penalties.
	 Letter from Peter Mason, dated 15 January 2010:
	I am responding in respect of the National Measurement Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 16 December 2009, to the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills concerning powers to impose administrative penalties.
	The powers which this Agency exercises, relating to the regulation of legal weights and measures used in trade and the enforcement of various European Directives, do not currently extend to imposing administrative penalties.
	 Letter from Gareth Jones, dated 25 January 2010:
	I am replying on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled 16 December 2009, UIN 309294, to the Minister of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	Companies House has responsibility for two types of administrative penalties.
	Section 27 of the Companies Act 2006 provides the Registrar with the power to impose a civil penalty on a company for failure to comply with a notice to file a copy of the company's articles, or a document making or evidencing an alteration to the company's articles. This new section came into force in October 2009 and no penalties have yet been recovered.
	Section 453 of the Companies Act 2006 (formerly section 242A of the Companies Act 1985) imposes civil penalties on companies that file their annual accounts after the due date. The Registrar of Companies has a duty to collect the penalties that have been imposed under this section of the Act. The amounts recovered in penalties for each of the last ten years are as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 1999/2000 21.8 
			 2000/01 25.2 
			 2001/02 23.7 
			 2002/03 27.6 
			 2003/04 28.0 
			 2004/05 32.0 
			 2005/06 30.2 
			 2006/07 39.0 
			 2007/08 42.0 
			 2008/09 (1)52.9 
			 (1) The higher than usual increase in 2008/09 is as a result of an increase in penalty levels agreed by Parliament on 6 April 2008. 
		
	
	All receipts are remitted to the consolidated fund. They are not retained by Companies House or the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Departmental Pay

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding his Department has allocated for  (a) year end and  (b) in-year bonuses in 2009-10.

Pat McFadden: BIS was formed through a MOG change that occurred in June 2009. The Department was created by merging The Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). Due to the timing of the MOG change it was decided that both Departments would continue with separate remits for 2009-10 before producing a single BIS remit for 2010-11. The two former Departments have allocated the following amounts of money for performance awards in 2009-10:
	
		
			   Department 
			   BERR  DIUS 
			 Amount of money allocated for in year performance awards (£) 427,578 - 
			 Percentage of pay bill allocated for in year performance awards 0.40 - 
			 Amount of money allocated for annual performance awards (£) 931,300 280,756 
			 Percentage of pay bill allocated for annual performance awards 0.86 0.70 
			 FTEs 2,300 784 
			  Notes: 1. The data included cover all staff below the SCS. 2. The DIUS data for the in year performance award budget are currently unavailable as these are held locally at an individual group level. The in year performance bonuses that were awarded in 2008-09 totalled £13,855.

Land Agreements Exclusion and Revocation Order 2004

John Grogan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to lay before Parliament the instrument to repeal the Land Agreements Exclusion and Revocation Order 2004.

Kevin Brennan: The instrument to repeal the Land Agreements Exclusion and Revocation Order 2004 was laid before Parliament on 21 January 2010.

Manufacturing Industries: Export Credit Guarantees

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of export credit guarantees in supporting the manufacturing industry; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Lucas: Since the start of 2009, the Government have introduced a number of initiatives which will provide real help to exporters, as well as other businesses, during the current economic downturn. These have included the Working Capital Scheme, and on 20 October 2009 it was announced that ECGD, the UK export credit agency, was launching a scheme to support the confirmation of Letter of Credit Guarantee Scheme.
	The Government are considering what other measures might support manufacturing industry and has and will continue to work with banks and business organisations to identify what further measures may be appropriate. ECGD will continue to work with UKTI and regional development agencies to ensure British exporters get the real help they need to take advantage of all the opportunities open to them.

National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship

Mark Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much the National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship has cost in each year since its establishment; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship (NCGE) was set up as an independent company limited by guarantee in 2004 by British Chambers of Commerce and other stakeholders. NCGE is funded by BIS to promote enterprise and entrepreneurship in our universities, with the aim of increasing the numbers of students, and graduates thinking about and actually becoming self-employed or starting a business. NCGE has received the following funding:
	
		
			  (£) 
			 2003-04 189,175 
			 2004-05 700,175 
			 2005-06 910,000 
			 2006-07 901,500 
			 2007-08 725,000 
			 2008-09 955,000 
			 2009-10 1,410,868 
		
	
	This year their programmes include Flying Start providing 8,000 students and graduates with the opportunity to attend workshop style events that encourage them to think seriously about becoming self-employed, and help them to develop a business idea.

New Businesses: Females

Tom Brake: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what new initiatives his Department has taken to help unemployed young women to set up small businesses in the last 12 months.

Rosie Winterton: The Department is continuing to work with the Department for Work and Pensions to raise the profile of enterprise among jobseekers, including young women, and help them access the advice and support they need. Building on the success of the self-employment support provided under the Six Month Offer, access to intensive business start-up support and advice through Business Link is due to be extended to those who have been unemployed for 13 weeks or more. In addition, eligible jobseekers will be able to receive the tax-free Self-Employment Credit of £50 a week for up to 16 weeks to help with the transition from benefits to work, including self-employment.
	Female entrepreneurship is also being encouraged through the Flying Start-Make It Happen programme, where 5,000 more places have been made available to provide unemployed graduates with the help and support they need to become successful entrepreneurs and start their own business.

One North East

Jim Cousins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the estimated monetary value was of One North East's share in the assets of the North East Property Partnership on 1 April in each year from 2004 to 2009; how much income was received by One North East from the partnership in 2008-09; and how much it is estimated will be received in 2009-10.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 25 January 2010
	The value of One North East's share in the assets of the North East Property Partnership (NEPP), including the Loan Notes receivable by the Agency were, on 1 April in each year, as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2005 154,361,000 
			 2006 135,753,000 
			 2007 139,241,000 
			 2008 126,437,000 
			 2009 108,143,000 
		
	
	NEPP was created 1 April 2004. The first set of accounts was therefore for the year ending 31 March 2005.
	ONE received £8.4 million income from the partnership in 2008-09.
	The estimated income to be received in 2009-10 is £11 million.

One North East

Jim Cousins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many units were in the portfolio which One North East transferred to the North East Property partnership on 1 April 2004; what the average rent roll was of those units; and what the total area was of those units.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 25 January 2010
	The information requested is as follows:
	The number of units in the portfolio was-883.
	The average rent roll per unit is-£12,774.
	The total area of the units is-384,110 m(2).

Small Businesses: Bexley

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many small businesses in the London Borough of Bexley have applied for financial assistance under the  (a) Enterprise Finance Guarantee and  (b) Capital Enterprise Scheme since their inception; and how many such applications have been granted under each scheme.

Rosie Winterton: Under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee, as of 13 January, 14 businesses in the London Borough of Bexley have been offered loans totalling £1.15 million. Businesses may apply for a loan from any one of the participating lenders who will assess which form of lending, including the Enterprise Finance Guarantee, is most appropriate. We do not hold figures for those businesses which are instead offered a normal commercial loan, or are rejected for failing to meet the lender's commercial criteria.
	With respect to the Capital for Enterprise Fund equity scheme, CfEF received 243 enquiries from businesses in London seeking investment to the value of £293 million. Thus far, four businesses have received investments totalling £4.8 million, two businesses have agreed terms on investments with a value of £3.2 million, three businesses has been offered investment totalling £5 million and 23 propositions are under active consideration with a value of £39.3 million. The remaining enquiries are either being considered subject to further information to be supplied by the applicant or have been rejected or withdrawn. I am unable to provide a breakdown by parliamentary constituency or local authority as this could make it possible to identify the individual companies that have received support.

Streatham

Keith Hill: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will set out, with statistical evidence relating as closely as possible to Streatham constituency, the effects on that constituency of changes to his Department's policies since 1997.

Pat McFadden: The statistical information requested is only available in London at borough level. I refer the right hon. Member to my answer to the hon. Member for Vauxhall (Kate Hoey) on 25 January 2010,  Official Report column 685W.

Unemployment: Young People

Steve Webb: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people aged between 18 and 24 years and not in employment, education, or training in each  (a) region and  (b) local authority on the latest date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: Table 1 gives estimates of the number and proportion of people aged(1) 18 to 24 not in education employment or training (NEET) in each region in quarter 3 2009. This information is from the Labour Force Survey. Please note quarterly estimates are heavily affected by seasonality and peak in quarter 3.
	We are unable to produce NEET estimates for 18 to 24-year-olds by local authority as the sample sizes are too small, however we do have estimates for 16 to 24 year old NEET by local education authority taken from the 2008 Annual Population Survey. These estimates are given in table 2. Please note that these figures are not comparable with those in table 1, as they are for a different age group and a different time period.
	All of the estimates given are subject to sampling variability and should therefore be treated with caution and viewed in conjunction with their Confidence Intervals(2) (CIs), which indicate how accurate an estimate is. For example, a CI of +/-4.2 percentage points (pp) means that the true value is between 4.2pp above the estimate and 4.2pp below the estimate.
	(1) Age used is respondents academic age, which is defined as their age at the preceding 31 August.
	(2) Those given are 95 per cent. confidence intervals.
	In December 2009, the Government published Investing in Potential, our strategy to increase the proportion of 16 to 24-year-olds in education, employment or training and reduce the proportion of those who are NEET. This can be found here:
	http://publications.dcsf.gov.uk/default.aspx?PageFunction= productdetailsPageMode=publicationsProductId=DCSF-01145-2009
	
		
			  Table 1: People aged 18 to 24 not in education, employment or training in Q3 2009 
			  Region  Number NEET  Percentage NEET  95 per cent. Confidence Interval 
			 North East 67,000 25.7 +/-4.6 
			 North West 160,000 23.7 +/-27 
			 Yorks and Humber 103,000 20.2 +/-2.9 
			 East Midlands 76,000 18.1 +/-3.1 
			 West Midlands 109,000 22.1 +/-3.1 
			 East of England 78,000 17.2 +/-2.9 
			 London 148,000 18.7 +/-2.6 
			 South East 118,000 16.6 +/-2.3 
			 South West 73,000 17.0 +/-3.0 
			 England 933,000 19.7 +/-1.0 
			  Base: 18 to 24-year-olds  Source: Q3 2009 Labour Force Survey 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: People aged 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training in 2008 
			   Number NEET  Percentage NEET  95 per cent. Confidence Interval 
			 England 857,000 14.3 +/-0.4 
			 Barking and Dagenham 4,000 20 +/-7 
			 Barnet 7,000 19 +/-8 
			 Barnsley 5,000 19 +/-6 
			 Bath and North East Somerset 2,000 9 +/-4 
			 Bedfordshire 4,000 8 +/-4 
			 Bexley 3,000 14 +/-8 
			 Birmingham 29,000 20 +/-5 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 2,000 16 +/-5 
			 Blackpool 2,000 12 +/-5 
			 Bolton 4,000 12 +/-5 
			 Bournemouth 3,000 14 +/-5 
			 Bracknell Forest 2,000 13 +/-6 
			 Bradford 9,000 14 +/-5 
			 Brent 4,000 14 +/-7 
			 Brighton and Hove 4,000 12 +/-4 
			 Bristol 9,000 14 +/-5 
			 Bromley 5,000 16 +/-8 
			 Buckinghamshire 5,000 11 +/-5 
			 Bury 3,000 14 +/-5 
			 Calderdale 4,000 18 +/-6 
			 Cambridgeshire 8,000 11 +/-5 
			 Camden 3,000 10 +/-5 
			 Cheshire 9,000 13 +/-4 
			 Cornwall 5,000 10 +/-5 
			 Coventry 9,000 19 +/-5 
			 Croydon 6,000 16 +/-9 
			 Cumbria 2,000 5 +/-4 
			 Darlington 1,000 12 +/-6 
			 Derby 4,000 13 +/-5 
			 Derbyshire 10,000 14 +/-5 
			 Devon 5,000 6 +/-3 
			 Doncaster 8,000 22 +/-6 
			 Dorset 3,000 8 +/-5 
			 Dudley 8,000 19 +/-5 
			 Durham 11,000 17 +/-5 
			 Ealing 5,000 13 +/-7 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 5,000 14 +/-6 
			 East Sussex 8,000 17 +/-6 
			 Enfield 3,000 12 +/-7 
			 Essex 21,000 14 +/-4 
			 Gateshead 4,000 21 +/-6 
			 Gloucestershire 6,000 10 +/-5 
			 Greenwich 4,000 16 +/-8 
			 Hackney 5,000 20 +/-8 
			 Halton 3,000 23 +/-6 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 2,000 12 +/-7 
			 Hampshire 16,000 11 +/-3 
			 Haringey 6,000 20 +/-8 
			 Harrow 3,000 13 +/-7 
			 Hartlepool 3,000 27 +/-7 
			 Havering 2,000 7 +/-5 
			 Herefordshire 2,000 12 +/-6 
			 Hertfordshire 14,000 13 +/-4 
			 Hillingdon 4,000 15 +/-7 
			 Hounslow 6,000 22 +/-8 
			 Isle of Wight 2,000 18 +/-7 
			 Islington 3,000 14 +/-6 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 3,000 16 +/-9 
			 Kent 25,000 17 +/-4 
			 Kingston upon Hull 8,000 18 +/-5 
			 Kingston upon Thames 2,000 11 +/-6 
			 Kirklees 8,000 19 +/-6 
			 Knowsley 5,000 20 +/-5 
			 Lambeth 4,000 12 +/-7 
			 Lancashire 21,000 14 +/-4 
			 Leeds 20,000 15 +/-4 
			 Leicester 9,000 18 +/-5 
			 Leicestershire 9,000 14 +/-5 
			 Lewisham 5,000 19 +/-8 
			 Lincolnshire 10,000 13 +/-4 
			 Liverpool 10,000 15 +/-5 
			 Luton 4,000 16 +/-5 
			 Manchester 13,000 16 +/-4 
			 Medway 5,000 18 +/-6 
			 Merton 3,000 15 +/-9 
			 Middlesbrough 5,000 24 +/-6 
			 Milton Keynes 2,000 9 +/-5 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 6,000 10 +/-4 
			 Newham 4,000 12 +/-6 
			 Norfolk 15,000 17 +/-5 
			 North East Lincolnshire 4,000 21 +/-7 
			 North Lincolnshire 2,000 15 +/-6 
			 North Somerset 2,000 7 +/-4 
			 North Tyneside 4,000 20 +/-7 
			 North Yorkshire 7,000 12 +/-5 
			 Northamptonshire 12,000 14 +/-5 
			 Northumberland 4,000 11 +/-5 
			 Nottingham 7,000 12 +/-4 
			 Nottinghamshire 12,000 14 +/-5 
			 Oldham 7,000 25 +/-6 
			 Oxfordshire 6,000 8 +/-4 
			 Peterborough 4,000 20 +/-6 
			 Plymouth 3,000 8 +/-4 
			 Poole 2,000 12 +/-5 
			 Portsmouth 3,000 8 +/-4 
			 Reading 2,000 11 +/-5 
			 Redbridge 4,000 14 +/-7 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 4,000 27 +/-7 
			 Richmond upon Thames 2,000 12 +/-8 
			 Rochdale 3,000 14 +/-5 
			 Rotherham 7,000 24 +/-7 
			 Rutland * * * 
			 Salford 6,000 22 +/-5 
			 Sandwell 9,000 26 +/-6 
			 Sefton 7,000 19 +/-6 
			 Sheffield 13,000 16 +/-5 
			 Shropshire 3,000 10 +/-5 
			 Slough 2,000 14 +/-5 
			 Solihull 4,000 18 +/-7 
			 Somerset 7,000 13 +/-6 
			 South Gloucestershire 2,000 7 +/-4 
			 South Tyneside 3,000 16 +/-5 
			 Southampton 4,000 10 +/-4 
			 Southend on Sea 3,000 20 +/-7 
			 Southwark 6,000 16 +/-7 
			 St Helens 4,000 21 +/-6 
			 Staffordshire 11,000 11 +/-4 
			 Stockport 4,000 13 +/-5 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 4,000 18 +/-6 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 5,000 19 +/-6 
			 Suffolk 11,000 16 +/-5 
			 Sunderland 6,000 15 +/-5 
			 Surrey 8,000 8 +/-3 
			 Sutton 1,000 8 +/-7 
			 Swindon 3,000 16 +/-6 
			 Tameside 6,000 23 +/-6 
			 Telford and Wrekin 3,000 15 +/-6 
			 Thurrock 3,000 17 +/-6 
			 Torbay 2,000 12 +/-5 
			 Tower Hamlets 7,000 22 +/-7 
			 Trafford 3,000 13 +/-5 
			 Wakefield 7,000 16 +/-5 
			 Walsall 5,000 17 +/-6 
			 Waltham Forest 6,000 18 +/-7 
			 Wandsworth 3,000 12 +/-9 
			 Warrington 3,000 14 +/-5 
			 Warwickshire 6,000 13 +/-6 
			 West Berkshire 1,000 9 +/-6 
			 West Sussex 8,000 11 +/-4 
			 Westminster 5,000 15 +/-7 
			 Wigan 5,000 13 +/-5 
			 Wiltshire 7,000 15 +/-6 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 1,000 10 +/-6 
			 Wirral 6,000 20 +/-7 
			 Wokingham 2,000 11 +/-6 
			 Wolverhampton 9,000 29 +/-7 
			 Worcestershire 5,000 8 +/-5 
			 York 1,000 4 +/-3 
			 * = Data has been suppressed as the sample is too small.  Base: 16 to 24-year-olds  Source: 2008 Annual Population Survey